Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 28, 2026

A Novel Method for Localizing Reporter Fluorescent Beads Near the Cell Culture Surface for Traction Force Microscopy
Published on: September 16, 2014
Structural arrest and dynamic localization in biocolloidal gels
1Adolphe Merkle Institute, University of Fribourg, Route de l'ancienne Papeterie 1, Marly, Switzerland. najet.mahmoudi@stfc.ac.uk and Physical Chemistry, Lund University, Getingevägen 60, Lund, Sweden. anna.stradner@fkem1.lu.se.
Abstract:
Casein micelles interacting via an entropic intermediate-ranged depletion attraction exhibit a fluid-to-gel transition due to arrested spinodal decomposition. The bicontinuous networked structure of the gel freezes shortly after formation. We determine the timescales of structural arrest from the build-up of network rigidity after pre-shear rejuvenation, and find that the arrest time as well as the plateau elastic modulus of the gel diverge as a function of the volume fraction and interaction potential. Moreover, we show using scaling from naïve mode coupling theory that their mechanical properties are dictated by their microscopic dynamics rather than their heterogeneous large scale structure.
Related Concept Videos
The Colloidal State
Colloids
Colloids and Suspensions
Colloidal precipitates
Coagulation

