la404944w_si_003.avi (3.04 MB)
Gas-Flow-Induced Reorientation to Centimeter-Sized Two-Dimensional Colloidal Single Crystal of Polystyrene Particle
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posted on 2014-03-25, 00:00 authored by Xiaohui Meng, Dong QiuCentimeter-sized
two-dimensional (2D) colloidal single crystals
of polystyrene (PS) particles were fabricated at the water/air interface
by capillary-modulated self-assembly. Different from previous reports,
in this work, emulsifier was used to facilitate the stress release
during 2D colloidal crystal formation by adjusting the interparticle
lateral interactions. With the assistance of compressed nitrogen flow,
2D hexagonal colloidal single crystals of centimeter size were obtained
under appropriate emulsifier concentrations. A new method was also developed to transfer the 2D colloidal crystals
from the air/water interface to the desired substrate without obvious
disturbance. This new transferring method was proven not to be sensitive
to surface wettability nor curvature, thus 2D colloidal single crystals
with large areas could be obtained on different kinds of substrate.