Electrically controlled propulsion of skyrmions in chiral nematic

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that electric fields can precisely control the movement of skyrmions in chiral nematic liquid crystals, enabling programmable microscale dynamics through flexoelectric effects.

Contribution

It introduces a method to manipulate skyrmions using electric fields based on flexoelectric polarization, advancing soft matter control techniques.

Findings

Electric fields drive skyrmions along preprogrammed paths.

Skyrmion speed varies with electric field parameters.

Flexoelectric polarization enables controllable skyrmion motion.

Abstract

Design of soft matter capable of controllable microscale dynamics is a frontier of modern science. Jiahao Chen et al. demonstrate that an electric field can drive particle-like solitons-skyrmions in a chiral nematic along a preprogrammed trajectory with a variable speed within a two-dimensional plane. The effect is rooted in flexoelectric polarization of a deformed director field.