  We investigate the possibility of a striped inhomoegenous phase occurring as
an electronic system with an order parameter linearly coupled to the elastic
degrees of freedom is tuned through the electronic phase transition. We find
that in finite systems where boundary conditions create an eleastic
incompatibility, a stripe pattern may emerge in the vicinity of the electronic
transition. Stripes are stabilized when the gained elastic energy overcomes the
typical electronic and domain wall energy costs. In thin film geometries, the
stripes are found to extend across the entire depth of the system. We also
study the behavior of the phase fraction across the spinodal region of a first
order phase transition. The orientation of stripes and the possibility of more
complicated patterns is also discussed.
