Tunable dipolar capillary deformations for magnetic Janus particles at fluid–fluid interfaces

Assembling ellipsoidal particles at fluid interfaces using switchable dipolar capillary interactions.

How to dynamically tune an assembly of anisotropic colloidal particles adsorbed at fluid-fluid interfaces using dipolar capillary interactions is demonstrated. A previously discovered first-order phase transition is exploited and it is shown how to spontaneously turn off these dipolar capillary interactions by exceeding a critical field strength, providing unprecedented control of the bottom-up...

Adsorption of Janus particles to curved interfaces.

We investigate the adsorption of a spherical Janus particle to a spherically curved liquid-liquid interface. We show that the equilibrium contact angle is determined by the geometry of the particle, its wettability, and also the interfacial curvature. In contrast with a homogeneous particle, there is a preferred interfacial curvature (spontaneous curvature) due to the Janus particle when the pa...

Capillary interactions between colloidal particles at curved fluid interfaces

Colloidal superstructures programmed into magnetic Janus particles.

By engineering thin magnetic films onto homogeneous colloidal particles, various crystalline lattices are induced from simple magnetic Janus spheres. In situ formation of dicolloids amplifies the diversity of achievable dynamic structures. The competition between shape anisotropy and dipole orientation generates mesoscopic isomerism. This opens design space for anisotropic building blocks for s...

Facile, solution-based synthesis of soft, nanoscale Janus particles with tunable Janus balance.

We present a novel, versatile, and simple solution-based routine to produce soft, nanosized Janus particles with tunable structural and physical properties at high volume yield. This process is based on the cross-linking of compartments within precisely defined multicompartment micelles (MCMs), which are themselves formed by the self-assembly of ABC triblock terpolymers. Therein, the C blocks f...