Influence of Sedimentation on Crystallization of Charged Colloidal Particles

The method of density matching between the solid and liquid phases is often adopted to effectively eliminate the effect of sedimentation of suspensions on dynamic behavior of a colloidal system. Experiments on crystallization of charged colloidal microspheres with di-ameter of 98 nm dispersed in density-matched and -unmatched media (mixtures of H₂O and D₂O in proper proportion) are compared to examine the influence of sedimentation. Reflection spectra of colloidal suspensions were used to monitor the crystallization process. Results showed that the crystal size of the density-unmatched (namely, in the presence of sedimentation) sample grew faster than that of the density-matched (in the absence of sedi-mentation) case at the initial stage of the crystallization, and then the latter overtook and outstripped the former. To explain these observations, we assume that in the settling of crystals sedimentation facilitates result in more particles getting into the crystal structures. However, as the crystals increase to varying sizes, the settling velocities become large and hydrodynamic friction strips off some particles from the delicate crystal structures. Overall, the sedimentation appears to accelerate the crystal size growth initially and then retard the growth. In addition, the crystal structures formed under microgravity were more closely packed than that in normal gravity.