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Surface induced structures in nematic liquid crystal colloids

We predict theoretically the existence of a class of colloidal structures in nematic liquid crystal (NLC) cells, which are induced by surface patterns on the plates of the cell (like cells with UV-irradiated polyimide surfaces using micron size masks). These bulk structures arise from non-zero boundary conditions for the director distortions at the confining surfaces. In particular, we demonstrate that quadrupole spherical particles (like spheres with boojums or Saturn-ring director configurations) form a square lattice inside a planar NLC cell, which has checkerboard patterns on both its plates.