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Updated: Aug 5, 2026

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids
Published on: December 4, 2017
Dynamical arrest in colloidal monolayers induced by energy landscape
Chenghao Han1, Yanli Sun1, Xiaoyan Sun2
1College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
Abstract:
Using video microscopy, we experimentally investigate how a periodic potential landscape influences the dynamics of colloidal monolayers. The potential is generated by a layer of densely packed particles immobilized on the substrate, creating a spatially periodic gravitational field. In the absence of this external landscape, the monolayer behaves as a supercooled liquid: particles are temporarily confined by cages formed by neighboring particles but can escape over long time scales, allowing diffusive motion and structural rearrangement. As the strength of the imposed potential increases, the system undergoes a dynamical arrest. Particles become increasingly trapped in local minima of the external potential, leading to a dramatic slowdown of particle dynamics and a suppression of structural rearrangements. This strong spatial localization also hinders the cooperative motion of particles. As a result, dynamical heterogeneity is significantly reduced during the dynamical arrest. Our results show the critical role of the energy landscape in tuning colloidal dynamics and offer insight into dynamical arrest processes in complex environments.
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