When a nematic/crystal interface is subjected to an exchange of particles with a reservoir of some chemical species, the anchoring a at this interface can be changed by varying the chemical potentials μi of the reanchoring substances in the reservoir. It is shown that water is such a reanchoring substance; anchoring transitions are observed at nematic (E9)/crystal (gypsum, muscovite, phlogopite) interfaces for critical values of the partial pressure p of water vapor in contact with the interface. A simple theoretical model for such adsorption-included anchoring transitions is proposed.
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Pierański et al. (1990) studied this question.
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