Long-range orientation correlation in liquids

Long-range correlation of intra-molecular and inter-molecular vibration in liquid CCl4

Experiments measuring the polarization dependence of hyper-Raman light scattering reveal long-range correlation of molecular vibrations in liquid CCl₄. The ν₃ and ν₁ + ν₄ intra-molecular vibrations at about 770 cm^-1 are strongly polarized transverse to the scattering wavevector. Weaker transverse polarization is exhibited by the ν₁, ν₂, and ν₄ intra-molecular vibrations and by the inter-molecular collision-induced band around 0 cm^-1. The observed polarization dependence is due to the correlation of the vibrations on molecules separated by about 200 nm. The strength of the observed correlation increases with the transition dipole moment for the vibration mode and is consistent with dipole-dipole coupling.

Phase modulators with tunability in wavefronts and optical axes originating from anisotropic molecular tilts under symmetric electric field II: experiments

We demonstrate, for the first time, an electrically-tunable and physically-planar freeform optical element made up of nematic liquid crystals (LCs). Continued on numerical study in previous paper (Part I), experimental results here show that it is possible to break the rotational symmetry of the wavefront through the use of uneven tilt angles of the LC molecules even though the electric potential is rotationally symmetric. Our optical element offers the ability to electrically tune the direction of the optical axis, the wavefront deviation, as well as the Zernike polynomials for general descriptions of wavefronts. Corresponding Zernike coefficients of a Zernike polynomial that are related to defocus and spherical aberration, which can be adjusted individually or together. The minimum wavefront deviation is >λ/6. The Zernike coefficients related to coma aberration or the tilt of the optical axis are also electrically tunable. By incorporating our LC phase modulator with tunability of freeform wavefronts into a simple reflective optical system, we demonstrate convincing image performance for off-axis image aberration correction. This approach will inspire further development and design of LC optical elements for applications, such as hyperspectral imagers in aerospace optics, augmented reality, virtual reality, quantum information systems, innovative miniaturized reflective telescopic systems for astrophysics, planetary science, and earth science.

Forces between zinc sulphide surfaces; amplification of the hydrophobic attraction by surface charge

Smooth Zinc Sulphide (ZnS) surfaces were prepared by magnetron sputtering and the interaction forces were measured between them as a function of pH. At the isoelectric point (iep) of pH 7.1 the attractive force was well described by the van der Waals interaction calculated using Lifshitz theory for a layered system. Away from the iep, the forces were fitted using DLVO theory extended to account for surface roughness. At pH 9.8 the surfaces acquire a negative charge and an electrostatic repulsion is evident. Below the iep the surfaces acquire a positive charge leading to electrostatic repulsion. The forces in the range 3.8 < pH < 4.8 show an additional attraction on approach and much greater adhesion than at other pH values. This is attributed to the hydrophobic attraction being amplified by a small degree of charge on the surface as has previously been reported for adhesion measurements. The range of the measured forces is attributed to the long-range orientational order of water (>5 nm).

What is measured by hyper-Rayleigh scattering from a liquid?

Polarization and angle dependence of hyper-Rayleigh scattering (HRS) measured for liquid acetonitrile and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is analyzed in terms of contributions from randomly oriented molecules and additional contributions produced during intermolecular collisions and induced by the electric field of dissolved ions. All three contributions show the effect of long-range correlation, and the correlation functions are determined using the HRS observations combined with the results of molecular dynamics simulations. HRS from acetonitrile is polarized transverse to the scattering vector. This is due to long-range molecular orientation correlation produced by the dipole-dipole interaction, and correlation at distances r > 100 nm must be included to account for the HRS observations. Analysis of the HRS measurements for acetonitrile determines the length scale a = 0.185 nm for the long-range longitudinal and transverse orientation correlation functions B_L=-2B_T=a³/r³. Transverse polarized collision-induced HRS is also observed for acetonitrile, indicating long-range correlation of intermolecular modes. Strong longitudinal HRS is induced by the radial electric field of dissolved ions in acetonitrile. For DMSO, the angle between the molecular dipole and the vector part of the first hyperpolarizability tensor is about 100°. As a result, HRS from the randomly oriented molecules in DMSO is nearly unaffected by dipole correlation, and ion-induced HRS is weak. The strong longitudinal polarized HRS observed for DMSO is due to the collision-induced contribution, indicating long-range correlation of intermolecular modes. The HRS observations require correlation that has r^-3 long-range asymptotic form, for molecular orientation and for intermolecular vibration and libration, for both acetonitrile and DMSO.

Electrolytes induce long-range orientational order and free energy changes in the H-bond network of bulk water

Electrolytes interact with water in many ways: changing dipole orientation, inducing charge transfer, and distorting the hydrogen-bond network in the bulk and at interfaces. Numerous experiments and computations have detected short-range perturbations that extend up to three hydration shells around individual ions. We report a multiscale investigation of the bulk and surface of aqueous electrolyte solutions that extends from the atomic scale (using atomistic modeling) to nanoscopic length scales (using bulk and interfacial femtosecond second harmonic measurements) to the macroscopic scale (using surface tension experiments). Electrolytes induce orientational order at concentrations starting at 10 μM that causes nonspecific changes in the surface tension of dilute electrolyte solutions. Aside from ion-dipole interactions, collective hydrogen-bond interactions are crucial and explain the observed difference of a factor of 6 between light water and heavy water.

Long-range orientation correlation in water

Strong short-range intermolecular interactions result in position and orientation correlations between nearest neighbour molecules in isotropic liquids, but it is generally assumed that such correlations extend at most a few molecular diameters. Results from second-harmonic light scattering experiments presented here reveal long-range molecular orientation correlations in liquid water, where the molecular dipole orientation distribution has the form of a nearly pure transverse vector field. Spatial scales in the range 200-2000 nm are probed by the angle-dependent measurements and the observed correlations are thought to result from rotation-translation coupling in acoustic phonons in the liquid.

Developing a general interaction potential for hydrophobic and hydrophilic interactions

We review direct force measurements on a broad class of hydrophobic and hydrophilic surfaces. These measurements have enabled the development of a general interaction potential per unit area, W(D) = -2γ(i)Hy exp(-D/D(H)) in terms of a nondimensional Hydra parameter, Hy, that applies to both hydrophobic and hydrophilic interactions between extended surfaces. This potential allows one to quantitatively account for additional attractions and repulsions not included in the well-known combination of electrostatic double layer and van der Waals theories, the so-called Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory. The interaction energy is exponentially decaying with decay length D(H) ≈ 0.3-2 nm for both hydrophobic and hydrophilic interactions, with the exact value of D(H) depending on the precise system and conditions. The pre-exponential factor depends on the interfacial tension, γ(i), of the interacting surfaces and Hy. For Hy > 0, the interaction potential describes interactions between partially hydrophobic surfaces, with the maximum hydrophobic interaction (i.e., two fully hydrophobic surfaces) corresponding to Hy = 1. Hydrophobic interactions between hydrophobic monolayer surfaces measured with the surface forces apparatus (SFA) are shown to be well described by the proposed interaction potential. The potential becomes repulsive for Hy < 0, corresponding to partially hydrophilic (hydrated) interfaces. Hydrated surfaces such as mica, silica, and lipid bilayers are discussed and reviewed in the context of the values of Hy appropriate for each system.

Prediction of Small Molecule Hydration Thermodynamics with Grid Cell Theory

An efficient methodology has been developed to quantify water energetics by analysis of explicit solvent molecular simulations of organic and biomolecular systems. The approach, grid cell theory (GCT), relies on a discretization of the cell theory methodology on a three-dimensional grid to spatially resolve the density, enthalpy, and entropy of water molecules in the vicinity of solute(s) of interest. Entropies of hydration are found to converge more efficiently than enthalpies of hydration. GCT predictions of free energies of hydration on a data set of small molecules are strongly correlated with thermodynamic integration predictions. Agreement with the experiment is comparable for both approaches. A key advantage of GCT is its ability to provide from a single simulation insightful graphical analyses of spatially resolved components of the enthalpies and entropies of hydration.

Hyper-Rayleigh scattering from correlated molecules

The polarization dependence of hyper-Rayleigh scattering has been calculated for spherical domains of orientation correlated molecules. Distributions with radial or azimuthal mean polar orientation of the molecules are found that give results consistent with experimental observations, and expressions for the polarization ratios in terms of the product of correlation strength and correlated domain size are derived for these distributions. Assuming a plausible correlation strength, it is estimated that the correlated domain size in typical polar liquids is of order 100 molecular diameters.