Semisoft nematic elastomers and nematics in crossed electric and magnetic fields.

Nematic elastomers with a locked-in anisotropy direction exhibit semisoft elastic response characterized by a plateau in the stress-strain curve in which stress does not change with strain. We calculate the global phase diagram for a minimal model, which is equivalent to one describing a nematic in crossed electric and magnetic fields, and show that semisoft behavior is associated with a broken symmetry biaxial phase and that it persists well into the supercritical regime. We also consider generalizations beyond the minimal model and find similar results.