Reply to Comment on “Director reorientation in nematic liquid-single-crystal elastomers by external mechanical stress”

Theoretische Physik III, Universität Bayreuth - D-95440 Bayreuth, Germany

Received: 10 January 1997
Accepted: 24 January 1997

Abstract

In their comment E. M. Terentjev and M. Warner try to argue that the results we obtained in ref. [1] are physically incorrect. To do this they use estimates of the orders of magnitude, and their scaling with cross-linking density, of a number of elastic coefficients. We point out that their arguments are based on their misunderstanding of several basic concepts. First, they confuse the Landau model to describe phase transitions with a macroscopic description of the nematic phase. Second, they apply the technique of a linear stability analysis above the threshold of the instability, where this type of analysis is incorrect.