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Calculation of interfacial free energy for binary hard sphere mixtures. PROCEEDINGS OF THE INDIAN NATIONAL SCIENCE ACADEMY 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s43538-022-00108-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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Coli GM, Dijkstra M. An Artificial Neural Network Reveals the Nucleation Mechanism of a Binary Colloidal AB 13 Crystal. ACS NANO 2021; 15:4335-4346. [PMID: 33619953 PMCID: PMC7992132 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.0c07541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2020] [Accepted: 02/18/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Colloidal suspensions of two species have the ability to form binary crystals under certain conditions. The hunt for these functional materials and the countless investigations on their formation process are justified by the plethora of synergetic and collective properties these binary superlattices show. Among the many crystal structures observed over the past decades, the highly exotic colloidal icosahedral AB13 crystal was predicted to be stable in binary hard-sphere mixtures nearly 30 years ago, yet the kinetic pathway of how homogeneous nucleation occurs in this system is still unknown. Here we investigate binary nucleation of the AB13 crystal from a binary fluid phase of nearly hard spheres. We calculate the nucleation barrier and nucleation rate as a function of supersaturation and draw a comparison with nucleation of single-component and other binary crystals. To follow the nucleation process, we employ a neural network to identify the AB13 phase from the binary fluid phase and the competing fcc crystal with single-particle resolution and significant accuracy in the case of bulk phases. We show that AB13 crystal nucleation proceeds via a coassembly process where large spheres and icosahedral small-sphere clusters simultaneously attach to the nucleus. Our results lend strong support for a classical pathway that is well-described by classical nucleation theory, even though the binary fluid phase is highly structured and exhibits local regions of high bond orientational order.
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van der Meer B, Smallenburg F, Dijkstra M, Filion L. High antisite defect concentrations in hard-sphere colloidal Laves phases. SOFT MATTER 2020; 16:4155-4161. [PMID: 32266918 DOI: 10.1039/d0sm00335b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Binary mixtures of hard spheres can spontaneously self-assemble into binary crystals. Computer simulations have been especially useful in mapping out the phase behaviour of these mixtures, under the assumption that the stoichiometry of the binary crystal is ideal. Here we show that for a size ratio of q = 0.82 this assumption is not valid near the coexistence region between the fluid and the stable binary crystal, the MgZn2 Laves phase. Instead we find a surprisingly high number of antisite defects: up to 2% of the large spheres are replaced by small spheres in equilibrium. We demonstrate that the defect concentration can be estimated using simple approximations, providing an easy way to identify systems where antisite defects play an important role. Our results shed new light on the self-assembly of colloidal Laves phases, and demonstrate the importance of antisite defects in binary crystals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Berend van der Meer
- Soft Condensed Matter, Debye Institute for Nanomaterials Science, Utrecht University, Princetonplein 5, 3584 CC Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - Frank Smallenburg
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, Laboratoire de Physique des Solides, 91405 Orsay, France
| | - Marjolein Dijkstra
- Soft Condensed Matter, Debye Institute for Nanomaterials Science, Utrecht University, Princetonplein 5, 3584 CC Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - Laura Filion
- Soft Condensed Matter, Debye Institute for Nanomaterials Science, Utrecht University, Princetonplein 5, 3584 CC Utrecht, The Netherlands.
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LaCour RA, Adorf CS, Dshemuchadse J, Glotzer SC. Influence of Softness on the Stability of Binary Colloidal Crystals. ACS NANO 2019; 13:13829-13842. [PMID: 31692332 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.9b04274] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Mixtures of two types of nanoparticles can self-assemble into a wide variety of binary colloidal crystals (also called binary nanoparticle superlattices), which are interesting for their structural diversity and potential applications. Although so-called packing models-which usually treat the particles as "hard" with only excluded volume interactions-seem to explain many reported dense crystalline phases, these models often fail to predict the right structure. Here, we examine the role of soft repulsive interparticle interactions on binary colloidal crystals comprising two sizes of spherical particles; such "softness" can arise due to ligand shells or screened electrostatics. We determine the ground state phase diagram of binary systems of particles interacting with an additive inverse power law potential using a basin hopping algorithm to calculate the enthalpy of an extremely large pool of candidate structures. We find that a surprisingly small amount of softness can destabilize dense packings in favor of less densely packed structures, which provides further evidence that considerations beyond packing are necessary for describing many of the observed phases of binary colloidal crystals. Importantly, we find that several of the phases stabilized by softness, which are characterized by relatively few interparticle contacts and a tendency for local icosahedral order, are more likely to be observed experimentally than those predicted by packing models. We also report a previously unknown dense AB4 phase and conduct free energy calculations to examine how the stability of several crystals will vary with temperature. Our results further our understanding of why particular binary colloidal crystals form and will be useful as a reference for experimentalists working with softly repulsive colloids.
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Niu R, Heidt S, Sreij R, Dekker RI, Hofmann M, Palberg T. Formation of a transient amorphous solid in low density aqueous charged sphere suspensions. Sci Rep 2017; 7:17044. [PMID: 29213089 PMCID: PMC5719089 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-17106-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2017] [Accepted: 11/22/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Colloidal glasses formed from hard spheres, nearly hard spheres, ellipsoids and platelets or their attractive variants, have been studied in great detail. Complementing and constraining theoretical approaches and simulations, the many different types of model systems have significantly advanced our understanding of the glass transition in general. Despite their early prediction, however, no experimental charged sphere glasses have been found at low density, where the competing process of crystallization prevails. We here report the formation of a transient amorphous solid formed from charged polymer spheres suspended in thoroughly deionized water at volume fractions of 0.0002-0.01. From optical experiments, we observe the presence of short-range order and an enhanced shear rigidity as compared to the stable polycrystalline solid of body centred cubic structure. On a density dependent time scale of hours to days, the amorphous solid transforms into this stable structure. We further present preliminary dynamic light scattering data showing the evolution of a second slow relaxation process possibly pointing to a dynamic heterogeneity known from other colloidal glasses and gels. We compare our findings to the predicted phase behaviour of charged sphere suspensions and discuss possible mechanisms for the formation of this peculiar type of colloidal glass.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ran Niu
- Institute of Physics, Johannes Gutenberg University, D-55099, Mainz, Germany.
| | - Sabrina Heidt
- Institute of Physics, Johannes Gutenberg University, D-55099, Mainz, Germany
- Graduate School Materials Science in Mainz, Staudinger Weg 9, D-55128, Mainz, Germany
| | - Ramsia Sreij
- Department of Chemistry Physical and Biophysical Chemistry (PC III), Bielefeld University, D-33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Riande I Dekker
- Debye Institute for Nanomaterials Science, Utrecht University, NL-3584 CC, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Maximilian Hofmann
- Institute of Physics, Johannes Gutenberg University, D-55099, Mainz, Germany
| | - Thomas Palberg
- Institute of Physics, Johannes Gutenberg University, D-55099, Mainz, Germany
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Bommineni PK, Punnathanam SN. Molecular simulation of homogeneous crystal nucleation of AB2 solid phase from a binary hard sphere mixture. J Chem Phys 2017; 147:064504. [DOI: 10.1063/1.4997432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
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Escobedo FA. Effect of inter-species selective interactions on the thermodynamics and nucleation free-energy barriers of a tessellating polyhedral compound. J Chem Phys 2016; 145:211903. [DOI: 10.1063/1.4953862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Fernando A. Escobedo
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853, USA
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Herlach DM, Palberg T, Klassen I, Klein S, Kobold R. Overview: Experimental studies of crystal nucleation: Metals and colloids. J Chem Phys 2016; 145:211703. [DOI: 10.1063/1.4963684] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Dieter M. Herlach
- Institut für Materialphysik im Weltraum, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), 51170 Köln, Germany
| | - Thomas Palberg
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, 55099 Mainz, Germany
| | - Ina Klassen
- Institut für Materialphysik im Weltraum, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), 51170 Köln, Germany
- Projektträger Jülich, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Stefan Klein
- Institut für Materialphysik im Weltraum, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), 51170 Köln, Germany
| | - Raphael Kobold
- Institut für Materialphysik im Weltraum, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), 51170 Köln, Germany
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Palberg T, Wette P, Herlach DM. Equilibrium fluid-crystal interfacial free energy of bcc-crystallizing aqueous suspensions of polydisperse charged spheres. Phys Rev E 2016; 93:022601. [PMID: 26986371 DOI: 10.1103/physreve.93.022601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
The interfacial free energy is a central quantity in crystallization from the metastable melt. In suspensions of charged colloidal spheres, nucleation and growth kinetics can be accurately measured from optical experiments. In previous work, from these data effective nonequilibrium values for the interfacial free energy between the emerging bcc nuclei and the adjacent melt in dependence on the chemical potential difference between melt phase and crystal phase were derived using classical nucleation theory (CNT). A strictly linear increase of the interfacial free energy was observed as a function of increased metastability. Here, we further analyze these data for five aqueous suspensions of charged spheres and one binary mixture. We utilize a simple extrapolation scheme and interpret our findings in view of Turnbull's empirical rule. This enables us to present the first systematic experimental estimates for a reduced interfacial free energy, σ(0,bcc), between the bcc-crystal phase and the coexisting equilibrium fluid. Values obtained for σ(0,bcc) are on the order of a few k(B)T. Their values are not correlated to any of the electrostatic interaction parameters but rather show a systematic decrease with increasing size polydispersity and a lower value for the mixture as compared to the pure components. At the same time, σ(0) also shows an approximately linear correlation to the entropy of freezing. The equilibrium interfacial free energy of strictly monodisperse charged spheres may therefore be still greater.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Palberg
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, 55099 Mainz, Germany
| | - Patrick Wette
- Institut für Materialphysik im Weltraum, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), 51147 Köln, Germany
- Space Administration, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), 53227 Bonn, Germany
| | - Dieter M Herlach
- Institut für Materialphysik im Weltraum, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), 51147 Köln, Germany
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Bommineni PK, Punnathanam SN. Enhancement of nucleation of protein crystals on nano-wrinkled surfaces. Faraday Discuss 2016; 186:187-97. [DOI: 10.1039/c5fd00119f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
The synthesis of high quality protein crystals is essential for determining their structure. Hence the development of strategies to facilitate the nucleation of protein crystals is of prime importance. Recently, Ghatak and Ghatak [Langmuir 2013, 29, 4373] reported heterogeneous nucleation of protein crystals on nano-wrinkled surfaces. Through a series of experiments on different proteins, they were able to obtain high quality protein crystals even at low protein concentrations and sometimes without the addition of a precipitant. In this study, the mechanism of protein crystal nucleation on nano-wrinkled surfaces is studied through Monte Carlo simulations. The wrinkled surface is modeled by a sinusoidal surface. Free-energy barriers for heterogeneous crystal nucleation on flat and wrinkled surfaces are computed and compared. The study reveals that the enhancement of nucleation is closely related to the two step nucleation process seen during protein crystallization. There is an enhancement of protein concentration near the trough of the sinusoidal surface which aids in nucleation. However, the high curvature at the trough acts as a deterrent to crystal nucleus formation. Hence, significant lowering of the free-energy barrier is seen only if the increase in the protein concentration at the trough is very high.
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Affiliation(s)
- Praveen K. Bommineni
- Department of Chemical Engineering
- Indian Institute of Science
- Bangalore – 560012
- India
| | - Sudeep N. Punnathanam
- Department of Chemical Engineering
- Indian Institute of Science
- Bangalore – 560012
- India
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Beyer R, Franke M, Schöpe HJ, Bartsch E, Palberg T. From nuclei to micro-structure in colloidal crystallization: Investigating intermediate length scales by small angle laser light scattering. J Chem Phys 2015; 143:064903. [DOI: 10.1063/1.4928370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Richard Beyer
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität, D-55099 Mainz, Germany
| | - Markus Franke
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität, D-55099 Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Eckhard Bartsch
- Institut für Physikalische Chemie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany
| | - Thomas Palberg
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität, D-55099 Mainz, Germany
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Kozina A, Díaz-Leyva P, Palberg T, Bartsch E. Crystallization kinetics of colloidal binary mixtures with depletion attraction. SOFT MATTER 2014; 10:9523-9533. [PMID: 25354340 DOI: 10.1039/c4sm02193b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
In this work the crystallization kinetics of colloidal binary mixtures with attractive interaction potential (Asakura-Oosawa) has been addressed. Parameters such as fraction of crystals, linear crystal dimension and crystal packing have been quantified in order to understand how the crystal formation is driven in terms of the depth of the attractive potential and the composition of the binary mixture (described by the number ratio). It was found that inside the eutectic triangle, crystallization is mainly governed by nucleation and the crystal packing is close to the close-packing of hard spheres. Moving out from the eutectic triangle towards small component results in the crystallization of small spheres. Enrichment of the eutectic mixture with large component results in the crystallization of both large and small spheres, however, the kinetics are completely different from those of the eutectic composition. Crosslinked polystyrene microgels with nearly hard sphere interactions were used as model systems. Attraction was introduced by addition of linear polystyrene. The time evolution of crystallization has been followed by static light scattering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Kozina
- Institut für Makromolekulare Chemie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Stefan-Meier-Str. 31, 79104 Freiburg, Germany.
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Palberg T. Crystallization kinetics of colloidal model suspensions: recent achievements and new perspectives. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2014; 26:333101. [PMID: 25035303 DOI: 10.1088/0953-8984/26/33/333101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Colloidal model systems allow studying crystallization kinetics under fairly ideal conditions, with rather well-characterized pair interactions and minimized external influences. In complementary approaches experiment, analytic theory and simulation have been employed to study colloidal solidification in great detail. These studies were based on advanced optical methods, careful system characterization and sophisticated numerical methods. Over the last decade, both the effects of the type, strength and range of the pair-interaction between the colloidal particles and those of the colloid-specific polydispersity have been addressed in a quantitative way. Key parameters of crystallization have been derived and compared to those of metal systems. These systematic investigations significantly contributed to an enhanced understanding of the crystallization processes in general. Further, new fundamental questions have arisen and (partially) been solved over the last decade: including, for example, a two-step nucleation mechanism in homogeneous nucleation, choice of the crystallization pathway, or the subtle interplay of boundary conditions in heterogeneous nucleation. On the other hand, via the application of both gradients and external fields the competition between different nucleation and growth modes can be controlled and the resulting microstructure be influenced. The present review attempts to cover the interesting developments that have occurred since the turn of the millennium and to identify important novel trends, with particular focus on experimental aspects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Palberg
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, 55099 Mainz, Germany
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Agarwal V, Peters B. Nucleation near the eutectic point in a Potts-lattice gas model. J Chem Phys 2014; 140:084111. [DOI: 10.1063/1.4865338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
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Ott T, Löwen H, Bonitz M. Dynamics of two-dimensional one-component and binary Yukawa systems in a magnetic field. PHYSICAL REVIEW. E, STATISTICAL, NONLINEAR, AND SOFT MATTER PHYSICS 2014; 89:013105. [PMID: 24580344 DOI: 10.1103/physreve.89.013105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2013] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
We consider two-dimensional Yukawa systems in a perpendicular magnetic field. Computer simulations of both one-component and binary systems are used to explore the equilibrium particle dynamics in the fluid state. The mobility is found to scale with the inverse of the magnetic field strength (Bohm diffusion), for strong fields (ωc/ωp≳1). For bidisperse mixtures, the magnetic field dependence of the long-time mobility depends on the particle species, providing an external control of their mobility ratio. At large magnetic fields, the highly charged particles are almost immobilized by the magnetic field and form a porous matrix of obstacles for the mobile low-charge particles.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Ott
- Institut für Theoretische Physik II: Weiche Materie, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Universitätsstraße 1, D-40225 Düsseldorf, Germany and Institut für Theoretische Physik und Astrophysik, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Leibnizstraße 15, 24098 Kiel, Germany
| | - H Löwen
- Institut für Theoretische Physik II: Weiche Materie, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Universitätsstraße 1, D-40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - M Bonitz
- Institut für Theoretische Physik und Astrophysik, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Leibnizstraße 15, 24098 Kiel, Germany
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