Thermodynamics predicts how confinement modifies hard-sphere dynamics

Jeetain Mittal; Jeffrey R. Errington; Thomas M. Truskett

doi:10.1103/physrevlett.96.177804

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Thermodynamics predicts how confinement modifies hard-sphere dynamics

Jeetain Mittal·Jeffrey R. Errington·Thomas M. Truskett

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Abstract

We study how confining the equilibrium hard-sphere fluid to restrictive one- and two-dimensional channels with smooth interacting walls modifies its structure, dynamics, and entropy using molecular dynamics and transition-matrix Monte Carlo simulations. Although confinement strongly affects local structuring, the relationships between self-diffusivity, excess entropy, and average fluid density are, to an excellent approximation, independent of channel width or particle-wall interactions. Thus, thermodynamics can be used to predict how confinement impacts dynamics.

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Jeetain Mittal, Jeffrey R. Errington, Thomas M. Truskett. 2005-12-06. Thermodynamics predicts how confinement modifies hard-sphere dynamics. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.96.177804

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