Phase diagram of binary colloidal rod-sphere mixtures from a 3D real-space analysis of sedimentation–diffusion equilibria

Henriëtte E. Bakker; Simone Dussi; Barbera L. Droste; Thijs H. Besseling; Chris L. Kennedy; Evert I. Wiegant; Bing Liu; Arnout Imhof; Marjolein Dijkstra; Alfons van Blaaderen

doi:10.1039/C6SM02162J

Phase diagram of binary colloidal rod-sphere mixtures from a 3D real-space analysis of sedimentation–diffusion equilibria†

Henriëtte E. Bakker,*^a Simone Dussi,^a Barbera L. Droste,^a Thijs H. Besseling,^a Chris L. Kennedy,^a Evert I. Wiegant,^a Bing Liu,‡^a Arnout Imhof,

^a Marjolein Dijkstra^a and Alfons van Blaaderen*^a

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* Corresponding authors

^a Soft Condensed Matter, Debye Institute for Nanomaterials Science, Utrecht University, Princetonplein 5, 3584 CC Utrecht, The Netherlands
E-mail: henriette.bakker@gmail.com, a.vanblaaderen@uu.nl

Abstract

Self-assembly of binary particle systems offers many new opportunities for materials science. Here, we studied sedimentation equilibria of silica rods and spheres, using quantitative 3D confocal microscopy. We determined not only pressure, density and order parameter profiles, but also the experimental phase diagram exhibiting a stable binary smectic liquid-crystalline phase (Sm₂). Using computer simulations we confirmed that the Sm₂-phase can be stabilized by entropy alone, which opens up the possibility of combining new materials properties at a wide array of length scales.

Soft Matter

Phase diagram of binary colloidal rod-sphere mixtures from a 3D real-space analysis of sedimentation–diffusion equilibria†

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Phase diagram of binary colloidal rod-sphere mixtures from a 3D real-space analysis of sedimentation–diffusion equilibria

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