Extended Data Fig. 1: POM micrographs of laser-tweezer-driven vortex reconnections.
From: Fusion and fission of particle-like chiral nematic vortex knots
a, Two elementary heliknotons spontaneously fusing into a dimer; here sample thickness d = 30 μm, pitch p = 5 μm, and voltage U = 3.4 V. b, c, Laser tweezer manipulation of heliknotons to construct more complex vortex knots by incrementally fusing elementary ones greater complexity (b) and obtaining a “tangle” of fused heliknotons (c). Crossed polarizer orientations are indicated by white double arrows. The relevant parameters are d = 15 μm, p = 4.5 μm, and U = 2.1 V in b and d = 17.5 μm, p = 5.4 μm, and U = 1.8 V in c.
