Colloidal systems with competing interactions: from an arrested repulsive cluster phase to a gel
- 11 February 2009
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) in Soft Matter
- Vol. 5 (12) , 2390-2398
Abstract
We report an extensive numerical study of a charged colloidal system with competing short-range depletion attraction and long-range electrostatic repulsion. By analyzing the cluster properties, we identify two distinct regions in the phase diagram: a state composed of stable finite-size clusters, whose relative interactions are dominated by long-range repulsion, and a percolating network. Both states are found to dynamically arrest at low temperatures, providing evidence of the existence of two distinct non-ergodic states in these systems: a Wigner glass of clusters and a gel.Keywords
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