Many-body hydrodynamic interactions in charge-stablized suspensions

BANCHIO, A. J.; GAPINSKI, J.; PATKOWSKI, A.; HÄUSSLER, W.; FLUERASU, A.; SACCANA, S.; HOLMQVIST, P.; MEIER, G.; LETTINGA, M. P.; NÄGELE, G.

PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS

Año: 2006 vol. 96 p. 138303 - 138303

0031-9007

In this joint experimental-theoretical work we study hydrodynamic interaction effects in dense suspensions of charged colloidal spheres. Using x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy we have determined the hydrodynamic function H(q), for a varying range of electrosteric repulsion. We show that H(q) can be quantitatively described by means of a novel Stokesian dynamics simulation method for charged Brownian spheres, and by a modification of a many-body theory developed originally by Beenakker and Mazur. Very importantly, we can explain the behavior of H(q) for strongly correlated particles without resorting to the controversial concept of hydrodynamic screening, as was attempted in earlier work by Riese et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 85, 5460 (2000)].