Colloids on free-standing smectic films

We study the structure of a free-standing smectic-A film around a micron-size polystyrene colloid adsorbed onto the film. We find that a colloid or a cluster of colloids is surrounded by an optically distinct and radially decorated meniscus ending with a sharp edge. The observed strong and finite-ra...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The European physical journal. E, Soft matter and biological physics Soft matter and biological physics, 2006-06, Vol.20 (2), p.231-236
Main Authors: CONRADI, M, ZIHERL, P, SARLAH, A, MUSEVIC, I
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adsorption
Biomedical Research
Chemistry
Cluster Analysis
Colloidal state and disperse state
Colloids - chemistry
Computer Simulation
Exact sciences and technology
General and physical chemistry
Membranes
Microscopy, Confocal
Optics and Photonics
Particle Size
Physical and chemical studies. Granulometry. Electrokinetic phenomena
Polystyrenes - chemistry
Surface physical chemistry
Surface Properties
Thermodynamics
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Summary:We study the structure of a free-standing smectic-A film around a micron-size polystyrene colloid adsorbed onto the film. We find that a colloid or a cluster of colloids is surrounded by an optically distinct and radially decorated meniscus ending with a sharp edge. The observed strong and finite-range attraction between the adsorbed colloids is driven by the fusion of menisci. We interpret the structure of the smectic meniscus in terms of a model dominated by the surface free energy and we argue that the characteristic appearance of the meniscus is due to layer undulations.
ISSN:1292-8941
1292-895X
DOI:10.1140/epje/i2006-10016-2