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Oriented assembly of anisotropic particles at interfaces

Presenter
September 17, 2009
Keywords:
  • Liquids
MSC:
  • 82D15
Abstract
We study experimentally complex shaped partially wet particles on liquid-air interfaces. The interface deforms to satisfy the contact angle boundary conditions at the particle-liquid-air contact line. The deformations create excess liquid-air interface. When deformation fields between neighboring particles overlap, the excess area decreases as the particles approach each other. This creates a capillary attraction between the particles. Particle geometry influences the deformation field, creating preferred modes for particle assembly. Preliminary studies on the role of surfactants in altering these interactions will also be discussed.