Publications by Year: 2006

2006
Wyss, H. M. ; Blair, D. L. ; Morris, J. F. ; Stone, H. A. ; Weitz, D. A. Mechanism for clogging of microchannels. Physical Review E 2006, 74, 061402. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We investigate clogging of microchannels at the single-pore level using microfluidic devices as model porous media. The process of clogging is studied at low volume fractions and high flow rates, a technologically important regime. We show that clogging is independent of particle flow rate and volume fraction, indicating that collective effects do not play an important role. Instead, the average number of particles that can pass through a pore before it clogs scales with the ratio of pore to particle size. We present a simple model that accounts for the data.
wyss2006.pdf
Sugiyama, Y. ; Larsen, R. J. ; Kim, J. - W. ; Weitz, D. A. Buckling and crumpling of drying droplets of colloid-polymer suspensions. Langmuir 2006, 22, 6024-6030. Publisher's VersionAbstract
Spray drying of complex liquids to form solid powders is important in many industrial applications. One of the challenges associated with spray drying is controlling the morphologies of the powders produced; this requires an understanding of how drying mechanics depend on the ingredients and conditions. We demonstrate that the morphology of powders produced by spray drying colloidal polystyrene (PS) suspensions can be significantly altered by changing the molecular weight of dissolved poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO). Samples containing high-molecular-weight PEO produce powders with more crumpled morphologies than those containing low-molecular-weight PEO. Observations of drying droplets suspended by a thin film of vapor suggest that this occurs because the samples with high-molecular-weight PEO buckle earlier in the drying process when the droplets are larger. Earlier buckling times are likely caused by the decreased stability, demonstrated by bulk rheology experiments, of PS particles in the presence of high-molecular-weight PEO at elevated temperatures. We present a consistent picture in which decreased particle stability hastens droplet buckling and leads to more crumpled powder morphologies; this underscores the importance of interparticle forces in determining the buckling of particle-laden droplets.
sugiyama2006.pdf
Shepherd, R. F. ; Conrad, J. C. ; Rhodes, S. K. ; Link, D. R. ; Marquez, M. ; Weitz, D. A. ; Lewis, J. A. Microfluidic assembly of homogeneous and janus colloid-filled hydrogel granules. Langmuir 2006, 22, 8618-8622. Publisher's VersionAbstract
The microfluidic assembly of colloid-filled hydrogel granules of varying shape and composition is described. First, drops are formed by shearing a concentrated colloidal microsphere-acrylamide suspension in a continuous oil phase using a sheath-flow device. Both homogeneous and Janus (hemispherically distinct) spheres and disks are produced by confining the assembled drops in microchannels of varying geometry. Next, photopolymerization is carried out shortly after drop breakup to preserve their morphology. Representative wet and dried granules are characterized using fluorescence and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. Our approach offers a facile route for assembling colloid-filled hydrogel granules with controlled shape and composition.
shepherd2006.pdf
Schall, P. ; Cohen, I. ; Weitz, D. A. ; Spaepen, F. Visualizing dislocation nucleation by indenting colloidal crystals. Nature 2006, 440, 319-323. Publisher's VersionAbstract
The formation of dislocations is central to our understanding of yield, work hardening, fracture, and fatigue(1) of crystalline materials. While dislocations have been studied extensively in conventional materials, recent results have shown that colloidal crystals offer a potential model system for visualizing their structure and dynamics directly in real space(2). Although thermal fluctuations are thought to play a critical role in the nucleation of these defects, it is difficult to observe them directly. Nano-indentation, during which a small tip deforms a crystalline film, is a common tool for introducing dislocations into a small volume that is initially defect-free(3-10). Here, we show that an analogue of nano- indentation performed on a colloidal crystal provides direct images of defect formation in real time and on the single particle level, allowing us to probe the effects of thermal fluctuations. We implement a new method to determine the strain tensor of a distorted crystal lattice and we measure the critical dislocation loop size and the rate of dislocation nucleation directly. Using continuum models, we elucidate the relation between thermal fluctuations and the applied strain that governs defect nucleation. Moreover, we estimate that although bond energies between particles are about fifty times larger in atomic systems, the difference in attempt frequencies makes the effects of thermal fluctuations remarkably similar, so that our results are also relevant for atomic crystals.
schall2006.pdf
Miyazaki, K. ; Wyss, H. M. ; Weitz, D. A. ; Reichman, D. R. Nonlinear viscoelasticity of metastable complex fluids. Europhysics Letters 2006, 75, 915-921. Publisher's VersionAbstract
Many metastable complex fluids such as colloidal glasses and gels show distinct nonlinear viscoelasticity with increasing oscillatory-strain amplitude; the storage modulus decreases monotonically as the strain amplitude increases whereas the loss modulus has a distinct peak before it decreases at larger strains. We present a qualitative argument to explain this ubiquitous behavior and use mode-coupling theory (MCT) to confirm it. We compare theoretical predictions to the measured nonlinear viscoelasticity in a dense hard-sphere colloidal suspension; reasonable agreement is obtained. The argument given here can be used to obtain new information about linear viscoelasticity of metastable complex fluids from nonlinear strain measurements.
miyazaki2006.pdf
Lu, P. J. ; Conrad, J. C. ; Wyss, H. M. ; Schofield, A. B. ; Weitz, D. A. Fluids of clusters in attractive colloids. Physical Review Letters 2006, 96, 028306. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We show that colloidal particles with attractive interactions induced by a nonadsorbing polymer exhibit a stable phase consisting of a fluid of clusters of particles. This phase persists even in the absence of any long-range repulsion due to charge, contrary to expectations based on simulation and theory. Cluster morphology depends strongly on the range of the interparticle attraction: With a shorter range, clusters are tenuous and branched; with a longer range, they are more compact.
lu2006.pdf
Link, D. R. ; Grasland-Mongrain, E. ; Duri, A. ; Sarrazin, F. ; Cheng, Z. D. ; Cristobal, G. ; Marquez, M. ; Weitz, D. A. Electric control of droplets in microfluidic devices. Angewandte Chemie-International Edition 2006, 45, 2556-2560. Publisher's VersionAbstract

Streamlining microreactors: Electric fields enable the precise manipulation of microreactors in microfluidic channels. One of the key features of such reactors is the ability to combine different chemicals at a precise location to initiate a chemical reaction.

link2006.pdf
Liu, J. ; Gardel, M. L. ; Kroy, K. ; Frey, E. ; Hoffman, B. D. ; Crocker, J. C. ; Bausch, A. R. ; Weitz, D. A. Microrheology probes length scale dependent rheology. Physical Review Letters 2006, 96, 118104. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We exploit the power of microrheology to measure the viscoelasticity of entangled F-actin solutions at different length scales from 1 to 100 mu m over a wide frequency range. We compare the behavior of single probe-particle motion to that of the correlated motion of two particles. By varying the average length of the filaments, we identify fluctuations that dissipate diffusively over the filament length. These provide an important relaxation mechanism of the elasticity between 0.1 and 30 rad/sec.
liu2006.pdf
Kim, J. - W. ; Larsen, R. J. ; Weitz, D. A. Synthesis of nonspherical colloidal particles with anisotropic properties. Journal of the American Chemical Society 2006, 128, 14374-14377. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We describe a promising and flexible technique for fabricating uniform nonspherical particles with anisotropic phase and surface properties. Our approach is based on the seeded polymerization technique in which monomer-swollen particles are polymerized. The polymerization causes a phase separation to occur, giving rise to two-phase nonspherical particles. We show that the elastic contraction of the swollen polymer particles induced by elevated polymerization temperatures plays an important role in the phase separation. Moreover, chemical anisotropy of nonspherical particles can be obtained by using immiscible polymer pairs and by employing surface treatments. Furthermore, we are able to produce amphiphilic dumbbell particles consisting of two different bulbs: hydrophilic poly (ethylene imine)-coated polystyrene and hydrophobic polystyrene. Controlled geometries of these amphiphilic nonspherical particles will allow a wide range of potential applications, such as engineered colloid surfactants.
kim2006.pdf
Kaufman, L. J. ; Weitz, D. A. Direct imaging of repulsive and attractive colloidal glasses. Journal of Chemical Physics 2006, 125, 074716. Publisher's VersionAbstract
Coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering microscopy is performed on glassy systems of poly(methylmethacrylate) colloidal particles in density- and refractive-index-matched solvents. Samples are prepared with varying amounts of linear polystyrene, which induces a depletion driven attraction between the nearly hard-sphere particles. Images collected over several hours confirm the existence of a reentrant glass transition. The images also reveal that the dynamics of repulsive and attractive glasses are qualitatively different. Colloidal particles in repulsive glasses exhibit cage rattling and escape, while those in attractive glasses are nearly static while caged but exhibit large displacements upon (infrequent) cage escape. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.
kaufman2006.pdf
Hayward, R. C. ; Utada, A. S. ; Dan, N. ; Weitz, D. A. Dewetting instability during the formation of polymersomes from block-copolymer-stabilized double emulsions. Langmuir 2006, 22, 4457-4461. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We investigate the formation of polymer vesicles, or polymersomes, of polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) diblock copolymers using double emulsion droplets of controlled architecture as templates. To engineer the structure of the polymersomes, it is important to consider the concentration of diblock copolymer in the middle phase of the double emulsion. We describe how the presence of excess polymer can induce a transition from complete wetting to partial wetting of the middle phase, resulting in polymer shells with inhomogeneous thicknesses.
hayward2006.pdf
Guery, J. ; Bertrand, E. ; Rouzeau, C. ; Levitz, P. ; Weitz, D. A. ; Bibette, J. Irreversible shear-activated aggregation in non-Brownian suspensions. Physical Review Letters 2006, 96, 198301. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We have studied the effect of shear on the stability of suspensions made of non-Brownian solid particles. We demonstrate the existence of an irreversible transition where the solid particles aggregate at remarkably low volume fractions (phi approximate to 0.1). This shear-induced aggregation is dramatic and exhibits a very sudden change in the viscosity, which increases sharply after a shear-dependent induction time. We show that this induction time is related exponentially to the shear rate, reflecting the importance of the hydrodynamic forces in reducing the repulsive energy barrier that prevents the particles from aggregating.
guery2006.pdf
Gardel, M. L. ; Nakamura, F. ; Hartwig, J. H. ; Crocker, J. C. ; Stossel, T. P. ; Weitz, D. A. Prestressed F-actin networks cross-linked by hinged filamins replicate mechanical properties of cells. PNAS 2006, 103, 1762-1767. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We show that actin filaments, shortened to physiological lengths by gelsolin and cross-linked with recombinant human filamins (FLNs), exhibit dynamic elastic properties similar to those reported for live cells. To achieve elasticity values of comparable magnitude to those of cells, the in vitro network must be subjected to external prestress, which directly controls network elasticity. A molecular requirement for the strain-related behavior at physiological conditions is a flexible hinge found in FLNa and some FLNb molecules. Basic physical properties of the in vitro filamin-F-actin network replicate the essential mechanical properties of living cells. This physical behavior could accommodate passive deformation and internal organelle trafficking at low strains yet resist externally or internally generated high shear forces.
gardel2006.pdf
Gardel, M. L. ; Nakamura, F. ; Hartwig, J. ; Crocker, J. C. ; Stossel, T. P. ; Weitz, D. A. Stress-dependent elasticity of composite actin networks as a model for cell behavior. Physical Review Letters 2006, 96, 088102. Publisher's VersionAbstract
Networks of filamentous actin cross-linked with the actin-binding protein filamin A exhibit remarkable strain stiffening leading to an increase in differential elastic modulus by several orders of magnitude over the linear value. The variation of the frequency dependence of the differential elastic and loss moduli as a function of prestress is consistent with that observed in living cells, suggesting that cell elasticity is always measured in the nonlinear regime, and that prestress is an essential control parameter.
gardel2006.pdf
Fernandez-Nieves, A. ; Link, D. R. ; Weitz, D. A. Polarization dependent Bragg diffraction and electro-optic switching of three-dimensional assemblies of nematic liquid crystal droplets. Applied Physics Letters 2006, 88, 121911. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We report the fabrication of three-dimensional lattices of bipolar nematic liquid crystal droplets. The electro-optic properties of these materials consist of transitions between opaque, Bragg diffracting, and transparent states. These occur continuously at moderate electric (E) fields through bipolar axis rotation of the nematic droplets. An E field applied normal to the hexagonally close packed planes results in a Bragg diffraction pattern that is polarization independent. Application of in-plane fields allows switching between diffracting and transmitting states that depends on the polarization of the incident light.
fernandez-nieves2006.pdf
Dufresne, E. R. ; Stark, D. J. ; Greenblatt, N. A. ; Cheng, J. X. ; Hutchinson, J. W. ; Mahadevan, L. ; Weitz, D. A. Dynamics of fracture in drying suspensions. Langmuir 2006, 22, 7144-7147. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We investigate the dynamics of fracture in drying films of colloidal silica. Water loss quenches the nanoparticle dispersions to form a liquid-saturated elastic network of particles that relieves drying-induced strain by cracking. These cracks display intriguing intermittent motion originating from the deformation of arrested crack tips and aging of the elastic network. The dynamics of a single crack exhibits a universal evolution, described by a balance of the driving elastic power with the sum of interfacial power and the viscous dissipation rate of flowing interstitial fluid.
dufresne2006.pdf
Dinsmore, A. D. ; Prasad, V. ; Wong, I. Y. ; Weitz, D. A. Microscopic structure and elasticity of weakly aggregated colloidal gels. Physical Review Letters 2006, 96, 185502. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We directly probe the microscopic structure, connectivity, and elasticity of colloidal gels using confocal microscopy. We show that the gel is a random network of one-dimensional chains of particles. By measuring thermal fluctuations, we determine the effective spring constant between pairs of particles as a function of separation; this is in agreement with the theory for fractal chains. Long-range attractions between particles lead to freely rotating bonds, and the gel is stabilized by multiple connections among the chains. By contrast, short-range attractions lead to bonds that resist bending, with dramatically suppressed formation of loops of particles.
dinsmore2006.pdf
Deng, L. ; Trepat, X. ; Butler, J. P. ; Millet, E. ; Morgan, K. G. ; Weitz, D. A. ; Fredberg, J. J. Fast and slow dynamics of the cytoskeleton. Nature Materials 2006, 5 636-640. Publisher's VersionAbstract
Material moduli of the cytoskeleton (CSK) influence a wide range of cell functions(1-3). There is substantial evidence from reconstituted F-actin gels that a regime exists in which the moduli scale with frequency with a universal exponent of 3/4. Such behaviour is entropic in origin and is attributable to fluctuations in semi flexible polymers driven by thermal forces(4-7), but it is not obvious a priori that such entropic effects are responsible for the elasticity of the CSK. Here we demonstrate the existence of such a regime in the living cell, but only at high frequencies. Fast events scaled with frequency in a manner comparable to semi flexible-polymer dynamics, but slow events scaled with a non-universal exponent that was systematically smaller than 3/4 and probably more consistent with a soft-glass regime(8,9). These findings strongly suggest that at smaller timescales elasticity arises from entropic fluctuations of a semi flexible-filament network, whereas on longer timescales slow (soft-glass-like) dynamics of a different origin prevail. The transition between these two regimes occurred on timescales of the order of 0.01 s, thus setting within the slow glassy regime cellular events such as spreading, crawling, contracting, and invading.
deng2006.pdf
Conrad, J. C. ; Dhillon, P. P. ; Weeks, E. R. ; Reichman, D. R. ; Weitz, D. A. Contribution of slow clusters to the bulk elasticity near the colloidal glass transition. Physical Review Letters 2006, 97, 265701. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We use confocal microscopy to visualize individual particles near the colloidal glass transition. We identify the most slowly-relaxing particles and show that they form spatially correlated clusters that percolate across the sample. In supercooled fluids, the largest cluster spans the system on short time scales but breaks up on longer time scales. In contrast, in glasses, a percolating cluster exists on all accessible time scales. Using molecular dynamics simulation, we show that these clusters make the dominant contribution to the bulk elasticity of the sample.
conrad2006.pdf
Cohen, I. ; Davidovitch, B. ; Schofield, A. B. ; Brenner, M. P. ; Weitz, D. A. Slip, yield, and bands in colloidal crystals under oscillatory shear. Physical Review Letters 2006, 97, 215502. Publisher's VersionAbstract
We study dense colloidal crystals under oscillatory shear using a confocal microscope. At large strains the crystals yield and the suspensions form shear bands. The pure harmonic response exhibited by the suspension rules out the applicability of nonlinear rheology models typically used to describe shear banding in other types of complex fluids. Instead, we show that a model based on the coexistence of linearly responding phases of the colloidal suspension accounts for the observed flows. These results highlight a new use of oscillatory measurements in distinguishing the contribution of linear and nonlinear local rheology to a globally nonlinear material response.
cohen2006.pdf

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