Liquid-solid transitions of disklike colloids: stability and jamming

摘要: Several suspensions of disklike colloids undergo puzzling liquid—solid transitions. The case laponite, a synthetic clay, is demonstrative example which has recently generated good deal experimental and theoretical study. At relatively high ionic strength, above 10-4 M, transition from liquid to soft solid appears. Typical nematic defects are then observed. mechanism the status this currently actively debated. In regime, Debye screening length, defining range electrostatic repulsion, always smaller than particle size, controls short-range anisotropic interactions. These two contributions mixed in nontrivial way. One possible way uncouple these interactions lower strength. first part article, we show that exhibiting correlation peak observed at very low Such structural involves long-range stabilization and/or jamming compatible with Wigner glass transition. However, 3D off-lattice reconstructions solids small-angle scattering spectra suggest distribution not homogeneous space. second work, interaction potential different pair configurations computed using basic charge model. stability analysis raises interesting questions about long-term coagulation, (very) slow relaxation generally for colloidal strengths.