Hybrid Topological Defects in Ferroelectric Nematic Fluids

We investigate the evolution of topological defects in polar fluids driven by discrete inversion symmetry breaking across the nematic-to-ferroelectric nematic phase transition. Using photopatterned surface alignment to prescribe well-defined initial defect configurations in the nematic phase, we track their metamorphosis upon entering the ferroelectric phase. Through systematic comparisons between experiments and numerical simulations, we demonstrate that the resulting polar structures are generically hybrid, intertwining topological configurations of different dimensionalities. Specifically, we identify three basic hybrid defects evolving from precursor disclinations of net charge 0 and +1 (via pairs), and +1 (via single defects): domain walls terminated by surface disclinations, monopole-decorated domain walls, and meron-mediated boojum and monopole complexes. We further demonstrate that these stable hybrid polar defects are ubiquitous in the ferroelectric nematic phase, providing the basic motifs needed to understand, predict, and engineer complex topological textures in polar fluids.