Confinement induced splay-to-bend transition of colloidal rods

We study the nematic phase of rodlike f d-virus particles confined to channels with wedge-structured walls. Using laser scanning confocal microscopy we observe a splay-to-bend transition at the single particle level as a function of the wedge opening angle. Lattice Boltzmann simulations reveal the u...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review letters 2012-09, Vol.109 (10), p.108303-108303, Article 108303
Main Authors: Dammone, Oliver J, Zacharoudiou, Ioannis, Dullens, Roel P A, Yeomans, Julia M, Lettinga, M P, Aarts, Dirk G A L
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bacteriophage M13
Biomechanical Phenomena
Colloids
Elasticity
Mechanical Phenomena
Virion
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Summary:We study the nematic phase of rodlike f d-virus particles confined to channels with wedge-structured walls. Using laser scanning confocal microscopy we observe a splay-to-bend transition at the single particle level as a function of the wedge opening angle. Lattice Boltzmann simulations reveal the underlying origin of the transition and its dependence on nematic elasticity and wedge geometry. Our combined work provides a simple method to estimate the splay-to-bend elasticity ratios of the virus and offers a way to control the position of defects through the confining boundary conditions.
ISSN:0031-9007
1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/physrevlett.109.108303