Dresden 2014 – scientific programme

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DY: Fachverband Dynamik und Statistische Physik

DY 18: Granular Matter / Contact Dynamics

DY 18.9: Talk

Wednesday, April 2, 2014, 11:45–12:00, ZEU 118

Ordering of Vertically Agitated Granular Rods in a Circular Confinement — •Thomas Müller, Ingo Rehberg, and Kai Huang — Experimentalphysik V, Universität Bayreuth, 95440 Bayreuth, Germany

Agitated granular matter can be considered as a non-equilibrium mode system for phase transitions and pattern formation. From this perspective, spherical particles have been frequently investigated in the past. However, in plenty of natural systems or industrial applications, one also has to deal with anisotropic particles like rice, medicine capsules, wood pellets etc.

Due to their anisotropy, granular rods share many properties with the well investigated rod-like liquid crystals, such as a transition from an isotropic to a nematic ordering phase. Although thermal energy can effectively mix liquid crystal molecules, continuous energy injection is needed for the self-organization of granular particles to compensate the energy dissipation. Under agitation, such dissipative systems can then evolve into ordered states or distinct patterns.

We study a single layer of monodisperse granular rods in a circular cavity which is vertically driven at various amplitude and frequency. By varying the packing fraction and the aspect ratio of the rods, we experimentally explore different orientational ordering phases and also compare with computer simulations.