Brownian dynamics simulation of dense binary colloidal mixtures. II. Translational and bond-orientational order

Subrata, Sanyal and Sood, Ajay K (1995) Brownian dynamics simulation of dense binary colloidal mixtures. II. Translational and bond-orientational order. In: Physical Review E - Statistical Physics, Plasmas, Fluids, and Related Interdisciplinary Topics, 52 (4). pp. 4168-4178.

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Abstract

We report the Brownian dynamics simulation results on the translational and bond-angle-orientational correlations for charged colloidal binary suspensions as the interparticle interactions are increased to form a crystalline (for a volume fraction phi = 0.2) or a glassy (phi = 0.3) state. The translational order is quantified in terms of the two- and four-point density autocorrelation functions whose comparisons show that there is no growing correlation length near the glass transition. The nearest-neighbor orientational order is determined in terms of the quadratic rotational invariant Q(l) and the bond-orientational correlation functions g(l)(t). The l dependence of Q(l) indicates that icosahedral (l = 6) order predominates at the cost of the cubic order (l = 4) near the glass as well as the crystal transition. The density and orientational correlation functions for a supercooled liquid freezing towards a glass fit well to the streched-exponential form exp[-(t/tau)(beta)]. The average relaxation times extracted from the fitted stretched-exponential functions as a function of effective temperatures T* obey the Arrhenius law for liquids freezing to a crystal whereas these obey the Vogel-Tamman-Fulcher law exp[AT(0)*/(T* - T-0*)] for supercooled Liquids tending towards a glassy state. The value of the parameter A suggests that the colloidal suspensions are ''fragile'' glass formers like the organic and molecular liquids.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Publication:	Physical Review E - Statistical Physics, Plasmas, Fluids, and Related Interdisciplinary Topics
Publisher:	The American Physical Society
Additional Information:	Copyright of this article belongs to The American Physical Society.
Department/Centre:	Division of Physical & Mathematical Sciences > Physics
Date Deposited:	27 Apr 2011 06:04
Last Modified:	27 Apr 2011 06:04
URI:	http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/37213

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