0000000001162405
AUTHOR
Dirk Menke
Nucleation and crystal growth in a suspension of charged colloidal silica spheres with bi-modal size distribution studied by time-resolved ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering
A suspension of charged colloidal silica spheres exhibiting a bi-modal size distribution of particles, thereby mimicking a binary mixture, was studied using time-resolved ultra-small-angle synchrotron X-ray scattering (USAXS). The sample, consisting of particles of diameters d(A) = (104.7 ± 9.0) nm and d(B) = (88.1 ± 7.8) nm (d(A)/d(B) ≈ 1.2), and with an estimated composition A(0.6(1))B(0.4(1)), was studied with respect to its phase behaviour in dependance of particle number density and interaction, of which the latter was modulated by varying amounts of added base (NaOH). Moreover, its short-range order in the fluid state and its eventual solidification into a long-range ordered colloidal…
Competition between heterogeneous and homogeneous nucleation near a flat wall
We studied the competition between heterogeneous and homogeneous nucleation of an aqueous suspension of charged colloidal spheres close to the container walls. Samples of equilibrium crystalline structure were shear-melted and the metastable melt left to solidify after the cessation of shear. The crystallization kinetics was monitored using time-resolved scattering techniques: at low particle number densities n we applied an improved static light scattering method while at large particle concentrations ultra-small-angle x-ray scattering was applied for the first time. Our results show some unexpected behavior: the heterogeneous nucleation at the container walls is delayed in comparison to t…