Physics – Condensed Matter – Soft Condensed Matter
Scientific paper
2006-04-06
J. Phys.: Condens. Matter, 18 (2006), p. L371
Physics
Condensed Matter
Soft Condensed Matter
9 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in J. Phys.: Condens. Matter
Scientific paper
10.1088/0953-8984/18/28/L02
We study the phase behavior of hard spheres confined between two parallel hard plates using extensive computer simulations. We determine the full equilibrium phase diagram for arbitrary densities and plate separations from one to five hard-sphere diameters using free energy calculations. We find a first-order fluid-solid transition, which corresponds to either capillary freezing or melting depending on the plate separation. The coexisting solid phase consists of crystalline layers with either triangular or square symmetry. Increasing the plate separation, we find a sequence of crystal structures from n triangular to (n+1) square to (n+1) triangular, where n is the number of crystal layers, in agreement with experiments on colloids. At high densities, the transition between square to triangular phases are intervened by intermediate structures, e.g., prism, buckled, and rhombic phases.
Dijkstra Marjolein
Fortini Andrea
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