Anisotropic DLVO-like interaction for charge patchiness in colloids and proteins

Area of Science:

• Soft and biological matter physics
• Colloid and interface science
• Theoretical electrochemistry

Background:

• Electrostatic interactions are crucial for the behavior and stability of soft and biological matter.
• Particles in electrolytic solutions acquire charges, influencing their interactions.
• Inhomogeneous charge distributions on particles lead to complex interaction landscapes and assembly phenomena, challenging existing models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a theoretical framework for describing electrostatic interactions between inhomogeneously charged particles.
• To bridge different electrostatic models and provide a robust DLVO-like description.
• To enable accurate and computationally affordable modeling of complex particle interactions.

Main Methods:

• Building upon the linearized Poisson-Boltzmann theory.
• Developing a theoretical framework that merges distinct electrostatic models.
• Matching single-particle properties of different mean-field models to compare interaction energies.

Main Results:

• A robust DLVO-like description of electrostatic interactions between inhomogeneously charged particles was achieved.
• Quantitative agreement in pair interaction energies was found across a wide range of system parameters.
• The proposed framework successfully merges different models of inhomogeneously charged particles.

Conclusions:

• The study provides a strategy to merge different electrostatic models for inhomogeneously charged particles.
• This approach offers a reliable, accurate, and computationally affordable method for describing particle interactions.
• The findings advance the understanding of electrostatic interactions in soft and biological matter.