via depletion - mediated lock and key binding † Douglas
نویسندگان
چکیده
We study the depletion-induced self-assembly of indented colloids. Using state-of-the-art Monte Carlo simulation techniques that treat the depletant particles explicitly, we demonstrate that colloids assemble by a lock-and-key mechanism, leading to colloidal polymerization. The morphology of the chains that are formed depends sensitively on the size of the colloidal indentation, with smaller values additionally permitting chain branching. In contrast to the case of spheres with attractive patches, Wertheim's thermodynamic perturbation theory fails to provide a fully quantitative description of the polymerization transition. We trace this failure to a neglect of packing effects and we introduce a modified theory that accounts better for the shape of the colloids, yielding improved agreement with simulation.
منابع مشابه
Self-assembly of colloidal polymers via depletion-mediated lock and key binding.
We study the depletion-induced self-assembly of indented colloids. Using state-of-the-art Monte Carlo simulation techniques that treat the depletant particles explicitly, we demonstrate that colloids assemble by a lock-and-key mechanism, leading to colloidal polymerization. The morphology of the chains that are formed depends sensitively on the size of the colloidal indentation, with smaller va...
متن کاملPorous Liquid Phases for Indented Colloids with Depletion Interactions.
We study indented spherical colloids, interacting via depletion forces. These systems exhibit liquid-vapor phase transitions whose properties are determined by a combination of strong "lock-and-key" bonds and weaker nonspecific interactions. As the propensity for lock-and-key binding increases, the critical point moves to significantly lower density, and the coexisting phases change their struc...
متن کاملPorous liquid phases of indented colloids with depletion interactions
We study indented spherical colloids, interacting via depletion forces. These systems exhibit liquid-vapor phase transitions whose properties are determined by a combination of strong “lockand-key” bonds and weaker non-specific interactions. As the propensity for lock-and-key binding increases, the critical point moves to significantly lower density, and the coexisting phases change their struc...
متن کاملBinding kinetics of lock and key colloids.
Using confocal microscopy and first passage time analysis, we measure and predict the rates of formation and breakage of polymer-depletion-induced bonds between lock-and-key colloidal particles and find that an indirect route to bond formation is accessed at a rate comparable to that of the direct formation of these bonds. In the indirect route, the pocket of the lock particle is accessed by no...
متن کاملThree-dimensional lock and key colloids.
Colloids with well-defined multicavities are synthesized through the hydrolytic removal of silica cluster templates from organo-silica hybrid patchy particles. The geometry of the cavities stems from the originally assembled cluster templates, displaying well-defined three-dimensional symmetries, ranging from spherical, linear, triangular, tetrahedral, trigonal dipyramidal, octahedral, to penta...
متن کامل