Transition kinetics of defect patterns in confined two-dimensional smectic liquid crystals

Topological defects in liquid crystals under confined geometries have attracted extensive research interests. Here, we perform molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the formation and transition of defect patterns in two-dimensional smectic Gay-Berne liquid crystals with a simple rectangular confinement boundary. Two typical types of defect patterns, bridge and diagonal defect patterns, are observed, which can be transformable continuously between each other over time. The transition usually starts from the line or point defect regions, and the competition between neighboring and opposite boundary effects induces the continuous realignments of the smectic layers to connect the neighboring or opposite walls. The relative stability of these two defect patterns can be controlled by changing the confinement conditions. These results deepen our understanding of transition kinetics of defect patterns in confined liquid crystals.