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Critical Casimir Forces in Colloidal Suspensions

F. Schlesener·A. Hanke·S. Dietrich
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Abstract

Some time ago, Fisher and de Gennes pointed out that long-ranged correlations in a fluid close to its critical point Tc cause distinct forces between immersed colloidal particles which can even lead to flocculation [C. R. Acad. Sc. Paris B 287, 207 (1978)]. Here we calculate such forces between pairs of spherical particles as function of both relevant thermodynamic variables, i.e., the reduced temperature t = (T-Tc)/Tc and the field h conjugate to the order parameter. This provides the basis for specific predictions concerning the phase behavior of a suspension of colloidal particles in a near-critical solvent.

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F. Schlesener, A. Hanke, S. Dietrich. 2002-02-28. Critical Casimir Forces in Colloidal Suspensions. https://arxiv.org/abs/cond-mat/0202532

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