On the minimality of the radial singularity in nematic liquid crystals

Pierre Bousquet, Xavier Lamy

We show that the map $u_{\ast }:B_1\subset {\mathbb{R}}^3\to {\mathbb{S}}^2$, $x\mapsto x/|x|$, minimizes the anisotropic energy \begin{align*} \int_{B_1} \Big( k_1(\mathrm{div}\, u)^2+k_2…