Crystallization of hard aspherical particles
Crystallization of hard aspherical particles
- Event time: 1:00pm
- Event date: 12th April 2010
- Speaker: William Miller (Columbia University New York)
- Location: Room 2511, James Clerk Maxwell Building (JCMB) James Clerk Maxwell Building Peter Guthrie Tait Road Edinburgh EH9 3FD GB
Event details
We use numerical simulations to study the crystallization of monodisperse systems of hard aspherical particles. We find that particle shape and crystallizability can be easily related to each other when particles are characterized in terms of two simple and experimentally accessible order parameters: one based on the particle surface-to-volume ratio, and the other on the angular distribution of the perturbations away from the ideal spherical shape. We present a phase diagram obtained by exploring the crystallizability of 487 different particle shapes across the two-order-parameter spectrum. Finally, we consider the physical properties of the crystalline structures accessible to aspherical particles, and discuss limits and relevance of our results.
About Condensed Matter lunchtime seminars
This is a weekly series of informal talks given primarily by members of the institute of condensed matter and complex systems, but is also open to members of other groups and external visitors. The aim of the series is to promote discussion and learning of various topics at a level suitable to the broad background of the group. Everyone is welcome to attend..