1307.5886 (M. Majka et al.)

A model for environment induced interactions in colloids for general
choice of microscopic potentials    [PDF]

M. Majka, P. F. Góra

In this article we present a new theory of effective interactions in colloidal systems. Our approach allows us to include not only effects of particle-environment interaction but also the influence of interactions inside the environment. The derivation is based on translating many particle Hamiltonian into the occupation field language. The result is a formula that predicts the effective interactions under a general choice of microscopic potentials. By including intra-environment effects, this theory complements such approaches to colloid research as Dijkstra expansion or Asakura-Oosawa depletion interaction theory. In addition to the complete derivation of our theory, several examples of systems are analyzed either numerically or analytically. The predicted interactions qualitatively agree with known experimental and theoretical results.

View original: http://arxiv.org/abs/1307.5886