Shen B, Ricouvier J, Malloggi F, Tabeling P. Designing Colloidal Molecules with Microfluidics.
Adv Sci (Weinh) 2016;
3:1600012. [PMID:
27840804 PMCID:
PMC5080599 DOI:
10.1002/advs.201600012]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2016] [Revised: 04/01/2016] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
The creation of new colloidal materials involves the design of functional building blocks. Here, a microfluidic method for designing building blocks one by one, at high throughput, with a broad range of shapes is introduced. The method exploits a coupling between hydrodynamic interactions and depletion forces that controls the configurational dynamics of droplet clusters traveling in microfluidic channels. Droplet clusters can be solidified in situ with UV. By varying the flow parameters, clusters are prescribed a given size, geometry, chemical and/or magnetic heterogeneities enabling local bonding. Compact structures (chains, triangles, diamonds, tetrahedrons,...) and noncompact structures, such as crosses and T, difficult to obtain with current techniques are produced. Size dispersions are small (2%) and throughputs are high (30 000 h-1). The work opens a new pathway, based on microfluidics, for designing colloidal building blocks with a potential to enable the creation of new materials.
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