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Updated: Jun 3, 2026

Combining Microfluidics and Microrheology to Determine Rheological Properties of Soft Matter during Repeated Phase Transitions
Published on: April 19, 2018
Reentrant phase diagram of network fluids
J Russo1, J M Tavares, P I C Teixeira
1Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Roma La Sapienza, Piazzale Aldo Moro 2, 00185 Roma, Italy.
Abstract:
We introduce a microscopic model for particles with dissimilar patches which displays an unconventional "pinched" phase diagram, similar to the one predicted by Tlusty and Safran in the context of dipolar fluids [Science 290, 1328 (2000)]. The model-based on two types of patch interactions, which account, respectively, for chaining and branching of the self-assembled networks-is studied both numerically via Monte Carlo simulations and theoretically via first-order perturbation theory. The dense phase is rich in junctions, while the less-dense phase is rich in chain ends. The model provides a reference system for a deep understanding of the competition between condensation and self-assembly into equilibrium-polymer chains.
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