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Combining Microfluidics and Microrheology to Determine Rheological Properties of Soft Matter during Repeated Phase Transitions

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Published on: April 19, 2018

Local control over phase transitions in microgel assemblies.

Ashlee N St John¹, L Andrew Lyon

¹School of Chemistry and Biochemistry & Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0400, USA.

The Journal of Physical Chemistry. B

|August 20, 2008

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

This study investigated crystallization dynamics in poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) microgels and gold nanoparticles. Increased microgel concentration frustrated particle mobility and crystallization, contrasting with equilibrium findings.

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Area of Science:

Materials Science
Soft Matter Physics
Nanotechnology

Background:

Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) microgels are stimuli-responsive materials with tunable properties.
Gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) offer photothermal properties useful for localized heating.
Disordered glassy phases of microgel-Au NP composites present complex dynamics.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate crystallization dynamics in PNIPAM microgel and Au NP co-assemblies.
To explore the influence of localized photothermal annealing on crystallization.
To understand the role of microgel concentration in modulating crystallization kinetics.

Main Methods:

Coassembly of PNIPAM microgels with Au nanoparticles.
Localized photothermal annealing using a focused 532 nm laser.
Systematic variation of irradiation time, heat flux, and bulk temperature.
Analysis of crystallization dynamics as a function of microgel concentration.

Main Results:

Crystallization degree depends on heat flux, irradiation time, and quenching bath temperature.
Increased microgel concentration leads to frustrated particle mobility and crystallization.
Observed frustrated crystallization contrasts with increased mobility in equilibrium experiments.

Conclusions:

Localized photothermal annealing provides a method to study crystallization dynamics in microgel composites.
Microgel concentration significantly impacts particle mobility and crystallization, hindering it at higher concentrations.
Findings highlight the non-equilibrium nature of photothermally induced crystallization in these systems.