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Related Concept Videos

Colloidal precipitates01:09

Colloidal precipitates

The high insolubility of some precipitates can result in an unfavorable relative supersaturation. This can lead to colloidal particles with a large surface-to-mass ratio, where adsorption is promoted. For instance, in the precipitation of silver chloride, silver ions are adsorbed on the surface of the colloidal particles, forming a primary layer. This layer attracts ions of opposite charge (such as nitrate ions), forming a diffuse secondary layer of adsorbed ions. This electric double layer...
Crystal Growth: Principles of Crystallization01:25

Crystal Growth: Principles of Crystallization

Crystallization is a phase transformation process in which crystals are precipitated from a supersaturated solution or formed from other sources. During crystallization, atoms or molecules arrange themselves into a well-defined, rigid crystal lattice to minimize energy.
Initiating crystallization involves manipulating the concentration of the solute and the temperature of the solution. Since crystal growth occurs when the ratio of concentration and solubility of the solute in the solvent – the...
Ionic Crystal Structures02:42

Ionic Crystal Structures

Ionic crystals consist of two or more different kinds of ions that usually have different sizes. The packing of these ions into a crystal structure is more complex than the packing of metal atoms that are the same size.
Most monatomic ions behave as charged spheres, and their attraction for ions of opposite charge is the same in every direction. Consequently, stable structures for ionic compounds result (1) when ions of one charge are surrounded by as many ions as possible of the opposite...
The Colloidal State01:29

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The formation of a colloidal system is exemplified by an aqueous solution containing Cl− ions is introduced to another containing Ag+ ions, resulting in the precipitation of solid AgCl as extremely tiny crystals. Instead of settling out as a filterable precipitate, these crystals remain suspended in the liquid, showcasing a colloidal system.A colloidal system involves colloidal particles within the approximate range of 1 to 1000 nm in at least one dimension, dispersed in a medium called the...
Recrystallization: Solid–Solution Equilibria01:10

Recrystallization: Solid–Solution Equilibria

Recrystallization is a purification technique used to separate impurities from solid compounds. In this technique, no chemical reactions occur. Instead, it exploits physical properties only, specifically, the solubility differences between the desired compound and impurities, either at a single temperature or at different temperatures, and under other selected conditions. The solid-solution equilibrium (solubility equilibrium) of each component in the solution represents a binary phase...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Fabrication of Spherical and Worm-shaped Micellar Nanocrystals by Combining Electrospray, Self-assembly, and Solvent-based Structure Control
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Fabrication of large binary colloidal crystals with a NaCl structure.

E C M Vermolen1, A Kuijk, L C Filion

  • 1Soft Condensed Matter, Debye Institute for NanoMaterials Science, Utrecht University, Princetonplein 1, NL-3584 CC Utrecht, The Netherlands.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|October 7, 2009
PubMed
Summary

Researchers developed methods to create high-quality binary colloidal crystals with a NaCl structure using micrometer-sized silica particles. External fields and structured surfaces enabled the fabrication of large, 3D, oriented single crystals without stacking disorder.

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Area of Science:

  • Colloidal science
  • Materials science
  • Crystallography

Background:

  • Binary colloidal crystals enable precise material property tuning for photonics, semiconductors, and spintronics.
  • Gravity and slow crystallization rates typically hinder high-quality binary crystal formation with micrometer-sized colloids.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop methods for growing high-quality binary colloidal crystals with a NaCl structure from micrometer-sized silica particles.
  • To overcome limitations imposed by gravity and slow crystallization rates in colloidal crystal formation.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized external fields: electric, gravitational, and dielectrophoretic.
  • Employed a structured surface approach known as colloidal epitaxy.
  • Conducted simulations to analyze free-energy differences between crystal structures (NaCl and NiAs).

Main Results:

  • Demonstrated that the free-energy difference between NaCl and NiAs structures is minimal.
  • Showed that specific external field combinations favor the face-centered cubic (fcc) stacking of larger spheres, crucial for the NaCl structure.
  • Successfully fabricated large, 3D, oriented single crystals with a pure NaCl structure, free from stacking disorder.

Conclusions:

  • External field manipulation is effective in controlling colloidal crystal structure.
  • Achieved fabrication of high-quality NaCl binary colloidal crystals from micrometer-sized silica particles.
  • Overcame common challenges in colloidal crystal growth, paving the way for advanced material applications.