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Computer Simulation of Colloidal Suspensions

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Computer Simulations in Condensed Matter Systems: From Materials to Chemical Biology Volume 2

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Physics ((LNP,volume 704))

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Abstract

By definition, soft matter systems react sensitively upon external mechanical perturbations. This material class includes mesoscopic complex fluids such as colloidal suspensions. It is a major challenge to understand the fascinating properties of colloids from first principles, i.e., by deriving its properties from the microscopic interactions. Here, concepts borrowed from statistical physics are described, which are capable to overbridge the gap from microscopic over mesoscopic to macroscopic length scales. This is illustrated explicitly for charged colloidal suspensions and for star polymer solutions. A particular emphasis is placed on density functional theory.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Universitätsstraße 1, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany

    H. Löwen

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  1. H. Löwen
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via Campi, 213/A, 41100, Modena, Italy

    Mauro Ferrario Professor

  2. Dipartimento di Fisica, INFN, Università di Roma La Sapienza, Piazzale Aldo Moro 2, 00185, Roma, Italy

    Giovanni Ciccotti Professor

  3. Institut für Physik, Universität Mainz, Staudinger Weg 7, 55128, Mainz, Germany

    Kurt Binder Professor

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Löwen, H. (2006). Computer Simulation of Colloidal Suspensions. In: Ferrario, M., Ciccotti, G., Binder, K. (eds) Computer Simulations in Condensed Matter Systems: From Materials to Chemical Biology Volume 2. Lecture Notes in Physics, vol 704. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-35284-8_7

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