PHASE DIAGRAM FOR L/D < 5

Figure 5.1 shows the computed phase diagram of hard-spherocylinders in the region between =0 (hard spheres) and =5. The black squares indicate the reduced transition densities for values at which simulations were performed. In this and following figures, the reduced density is the density relative to the density of regular close packing of spherocylinders:

For particles with , the isotropic fluid freezes to form a plastic crystal (rotator phase). At higher densities, the rotator phase undergoes a first-order transition to the orientationally ordered phase. As is lowered to zero, this transition moves towards the density of regular close packing . Between =0.35 and =3.1, only two phases occur: the low-density isotropic phase and the high-density, orientationally ordered, crystal phase. The smectic phase first becomes stable at the I-SmA-S triple-point which is located =3.1. The nematic phase becomes stable at =3.5. The nematic-smectic transition takes place around =0.5 and is initially clearly first order, but the density jump at the N-S transition shrinks with increasing . The smectic to solid transition is located at =0.66--0.68 and is also first order.