Abstract
We describe a nonequilibrium phase transition in a geometrically confined charge-stabilized colloidal suspension. The equilibrium configuration for the spheres in this system is a two-layer square lattice, equivalent to two layers of a body-centered cubic (bcc) crystal. After electrophoretic shear melting, the suspension rapidly crystallizes to a buckled single-layer triangular lattice. This well-ordered solid phase subsequently undergoes a martensitic phase transition back to the two-layer square lattice. We use high resolution digital video microscopy to follow the emergence and evolution of order during these phase transitions.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1180-1190 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | The Journal of chemical physics |
| Volume | 103 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1995 |
| Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Physics and Astronomy
- Physical and Theoretical Chemistry