文章基本信息

标题：Surface molecular view of colloidal gelation
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作者：Sylvie Roke ; Otto Berg ; Johan Buitenhuis 等
期刊名称：Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
印刷版ISSN：0027-8424
电子版ISSN：1091-6490
出版年度：2006
卷号：103
期号：36
页码：13310-13314
DOI：10.1073/pnas.0606116103
语种：English
出版社：The National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
摘要：We investigate the phase behavior of surface-functionalized silica colloids at both the molecular and macroscopic levels. This investigation allows us to relate collective properties such as aggregation, gelation, and aging directly to molecular interfacial behavior. By using surface-specific vibrational spectroscopy, we reveal dramatic changes in the conformation of alkyl chains terminating submicrometer silica particles. In fluid suspension at high temperatures, the interfacial molecules are in a liquid-like state of conformational disorder. As the temperature is lowered, the onset of gelation is identified by macroscopic phenomena, including changes in turbidity, heat release, and diverging viscosity. At the molecular level, the onset of this transition coincides with straightening of the carbon-carbon backbones of the interfacial molecules. In later stages, their intermolecular crystalline packing improves. It is the increased density of this ordered boundary layer that increases the van der Waals attraction between particles, causing the colloidal gas to aggregate. The approach presented here can provide insights into phase transitions that occur through surface modifications in a variety of colloidal systems.
关键词：sum frequency generation ; surface spectroscopy ; transition ; nonlinear optical scattering ; calorimetry