6533b859fe1ef96bd12b6e96
RESEARCH PRODUCT
Liquid Crystal Phases in Suspensions of Charged Plate-Like Particles
Christophe LabbezBo JönssonMaxime Delhormesubject
02 engineering and technology010402 general chemistry01 natural sciencesLiquid crystalCoulombGeneral Materials Scienceliquid crystalPhysical and Theoretical ChemistryAnisotropyMonte Carlo simulationcharged discotic particlesPhysics021001 nanoscience & nanotechnologyElectrostaticsGlasses Colloids Polymers and Soft Matter0104 chemical sciencesCondensed Matter::Soft Condensed Matter[ PHYS.PHYS.PHYS-CHEM-PH ] Physics [physics]/Physics [physics]/Chemical Physics [physics.chem-ph]Crystallographycolumnar phaseChemical physicsVolume fractionExcluded volumeParticle[PHYS.PHYS.PHYS-CHEM-PH]Physics [physics]/Physics [physics]/Chemical Physics [physics.chem-ph]0210 nano-technologyColumnar phasedescription
International audience; Anisotropic interactions in colloidal suspensions have recently emerged as a route for the design of new soft materials. Nonisotropic particles can form nematic, smectic, hexatic, and columnar liquid crystals. Although the formation of these phases is well rationalized when excluded volume is solely at play, the role of electrostatic interactions still remains unclear and even less so when particles present a charge heterogeneity, for example, clays. Here, we use Monte Carlo simulations of concentrated suspensions of charged disk-like particles to reveal the role of Coulomb interactions and charge anisotropy underlying liquid crystal formation and structures. We observe a vast zoo of exotic structures, going from hexatic to columnar phases, which are shown to be controlled by the charge anisotropy. The particle volume fraction at which these phases start to form is found to decrease with increasing Coulomb interactions and charge anisotropy, which suggests a route to tune the structure of aqueous liquid crystals.
year | journal | country | edition | language |
---|---|---|---|---|
2012-04-25 | The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters |