Quasi-Two Dimensional Colloid Suspensions

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Stuart Rice is supported by a grant from the Theoretical and Computational Chemistry Program to perform experimental and theoretical studies of the properties of quasi-two dimensional systems. The systems to be studied are suspensions of uncharged monodisperse colloid particles in very thin cells. The proposed experimental studies will be based on digital video microscopy measurements, and use will be made of an optical tweezer to perform trapping experiments. Theoretical simulations will be used to extend the theory of transport in colloid suspensions to include structural fluctuations. Various applications of density functional theory will also be used to study the phase diagram of quasi-two dimensional systems. Particular questions to be addressed include: 1) the changes induced in structures of quasi-two dimensional phases, and the character of the transitions between those phases as a function of constraints associated with confinement; 2) the density dependence of the relaxation processes, and the onset of glass formation; 3) how relaxation processes in colloid suspensions are influenced by a transition from quasi-two dimensional to three dimensional confinement; and 4) how the range of colloid-colloid interaction influences the structure and dynamical behavior of quasi-two dimensional suspensions.The proposed studies will lead to a deeper understanding of the properties of liquid systems that, because they are constrained to two dimensional motion, exhibit unique thermodynamic behavior. This work may have important applications in the development of new materials or specialized devices.