Search results for "Colloidal crystal"
showing 10 items of 60 documents
Phenomenology of colloidal crystal electrophoresis
2003
We studied the motion of polycrystalline solids comprising of charged sub-micron latex spheres suspended in deionized water. These were subjected to a low frequency alternating square wave electric field in an optical cell of rectangular cross section. Velocity profiles in X and Y direction were determined by Laser Doppler Velocimetry. The observed complex flow profiles are time dependent due to the combined effects of electro-osmosis, electrophoresis, crystal elasticity, and friction of the crystals at the cell wall. On small time scales elastic deformation occurs. On long time scales channel formation is observed. At intermediate times steady state profiles are dominated by a solid plug o…
Confined binary two-dimensional colloidal crystals: Monte Carlo simulation of crack formation.
2010
Binary mixtures (A, B) of colloidal particles of different sizes in two dimensions may form crystals with square lattice structure (the A-particles occupying the white sites and the B-particles the black sites of a checkerboard). Confining such a system by two parallel 'walls' a distance D apart, long-range order in the direction parallel to the walls is stabilized by 'corrugated walls' that are commensurate with the lattice structure but destabilized by structureless 'hard walls', even if there is no misfit between the strip width D and the crystal lattice spacing. The crossover to quasi-one-dimensional behavior is studied by Monte Carlo simulations, analyzing Lindemann parameters and disp…
Soliton staircases and standing strain waves in confined colloidal crystals
2009
We show by computer simulation of a two-dimensional crystal confined by corrugated walls that confinement can be used to impose a controllable mesoscopic superstructure of predominantly mechanical elastic character. Due to an interplay of the particle density of the system and the width D of the confining channel, "soliton staircases" can be created along both parallel confining boundaries, that give rise to standing strain waves in the entire crystal. The periodicity of these waves is of the same order as D. This mechanism should be useful for structure formation in the self-assembly of various nanoscopic materials.
Controlled assembly of single colloidal crystals using electro-osmotic micro-pumps.
2017
We assemble charged colloidal spheres at deliberately chosen locations on a charged unstructured glass substrate utilizing ion exchange based electro-osmotic micro-pumps. Using microscopy, a simple scaling theory and Brownian Dynamics simulations, we systematically explore the control parameters of crystal assembly and the mechanisms through which they depend on the experimental boundary conditions. We demonstrate that crystal quality depends crucially on the assembly distance of the colloids. This is understood as resulting from the competition between inward transport by the electro-osmotic pump flow and the electro-phoretic outward motion of the colloids. Optimized conditions include sub…
Fabrication of Robust High-Quality ORMOCER® Inverse Opals
2006
The nanostructuring of ORMOCER® to form inverse opals is described. For this purpose a polymer opal is used as a template and infiltrated with liquid ORMOCER®. After photopolymerization of the resin the host opal is dissolved in tetrahydrofuran and an ORMOCER® inverse opal is obtained. It shows excellent periodicity (by SEM) and optical properties to reveal a high degree of face centered cubic order. This replication process leads to a nanostructured photonic crystal with the outstanding mechanical properties of ORMOCER® and high temperature stability up to 350 °C.
Ultrastrong composites from dopamine modified-polymer-infiltrated colloidal crystals
2015
Although strong and stiff synthetic composites have long been developed, the microstructure of today's most advanced composites has yet to achieve the sophisticated hierarchy of hybrid materials built up by living organisms. We have assembled hard and tough multilayered nanocomposites, which contain alternating layers of Fe3O4 nanoparticles and a 3-hydroxy-tyramine (dopamine) substituted polymer (dopamine modified polymer), strongly cemented together by chelation through infiltration of the polymer into the Fe3O4 mesocrystal. With a Young's modulus of 17 ± 3 GPa and a hardness of 1.3 ± 0.4 GPa the nanocomposite exhibits high resistance against elastic as well as plastic deformation. Key fea…
Functional Opals from Reactive Polymers: Complex Structures, Sensors, and Modified Photoluminescence
2007
This paper describes the synthesis and properties of functional opal structures, so-called colloidal photonic crystals (CPCs), from a variety of reactive polymers. Photoprocessable opals are presented as well as opals with incorporated smart defect layers that can be actively addressed by external stimuli. In addition, opals with functional bio-macromolecular defects have been developed. They present a new class of materials for optical biomonitoring through shifts of the induced photonic defect mode. Strong modification of photoluminescence according to the photonic bandstructure is observed from opals with embedded exclusively luminescent defect layer.
Artificial Opals as Effect Pigments in Clear-Coatings
2004
In this paper, we describe the use of artificial opals from polymer beads as effect pigments in transparent industial and automotive coatings. For this purpose, we synthesized monodisperse colloids from fluorinated methacrylates by surfactant-free emulsion polymerization. The fluorinated monomers, in combination with crosslinking, lead to a refractive index contrast, thermal stability, and solvent resistivity necessary for use as effect pigments. After crystallization of the monodisperse polymer beads, crystal flakes with iridescent colors can be obtained. The crystal flakes can act as effect pigments in various transpartent industrial and automotive coatings. due to photonic crystal behavi…
Functional Polymer-Opals from Core-Shell Colloids
2007
Colloidal photonic crystals were prepared from monodisperse core-shell particles. The shell is hereby formed from a functional monomer, such as glycidylmethacrylate or different reactive ester monomers, which can perform chemical reactions and the core from a standard monomer, which yields highly monodisperse colloids. It was possible to crystallize the core-shell particles into artificial opals with excellent optical properties. Reactions on the functional surface of the colloids were carried out, which lead to a dramatic rise in the mechanical stability or to a functionalization of His-tagged silicatein, which acts as nanoreactor to synthesize and immobilize gold nanoparticles from auric …
Chemical Approach to Functional Artificial Opals
2007
Artificial opals are self-assembled colloidal crystals, which consist of a cubic dense packing (fcc) of hard (not film-forming) colloids with diameters ranging from 200 to 900 nm. Because of their periodic nanostructure the assemblies are able to reflect light that matches their periodicity, i.e., UV- to IR-radiation depending on the size of the colloids. Thus, they present a subgroup of 'photonic crystals'. While, originally, the chemistry inside the colloids and the resulting opals was of minor significance, nowadays the chemical variation of opals is becoming more and more important for the preparation of functional and patterned opals. The search for functional opals is, therefore, espe…