Seminar Announcement, 10/16/2007

Levich Institute Seminar Announcement, 10/16/2007

Tuesday, 10/16/2007
2:00 PM
Steinman Hall, Room #312
(Chemical Engineering Conference Room)

Professor Kristen Fichthorn
Penn State University
Department of Chemical Engineering

"Atomic Scale Simulation of Colloidal Nanoparticle Forces"

ABSTRACT

Nanoparticles hold great promise for a diverse array of materials applications, ranging from nanoelectronic circuits and sensors to bulk materials with novel mechanical properties to biological materials. Two critical challenges with using nanocolloids in these and other technologies are stability and bottom-up assembly of the particles. In contrast to larger particles, where stability and assembly are easier to bring about, in part due to a wealth of sound heuristics based on experiments and theory, for nanocolloids far fewer successful reports exist for stability and especially for assembly.

Historically, the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory has been used to describe electrostatic and van der Waals interactions in colloidal systems. However, the assumptions of DLVO theory do not apply to nanoparticles. Further, recent studies suggest that forces that are not taken into account by DLVO theory, such as solvation and depletion, could be important in colloidal nanoparticle systems. From a theoretical point of view, it is possible to simulate colloidal nanoparticles using molecular dynamics. These studies can yield atomic-scale detail that is not currently accessible with experimental methods and they can be used to resolve the origins and magnitudes of forces between colloidal nanoparticles. I will discuss our recent work, in which we use molecular dynamics simulations to study the interplay between solvation, van der Waals, and electrostatic forces for model colloidal nanoparticles. These studies indicate that a wealth of phenomena can occur that can affect colloidal stability, alignment, and assembly.

BRIEF ACADEMIC/EMPLOYMENT BACKGROUND:

2003-present The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA. Merrell R. Fenske Professor

1999-present The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA. Professor of Chemical Engineering and Physics.

1998 – 1999 Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Berlin, Germany. Visiting Scientist.

1996 - 1999 The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA. Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering and Physics.

1993 - 1996 The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA. Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering and Physics.

1990 - 1993 The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA. Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering.

1989 - 1990 University of California, Santa Barbara, CA. Postdoctoral Research Associate in Chemical Engineering.

1985 - 1989 University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering.

1981 - 1985 University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. B.S. in Chemical Engineering.

CURRENT RESEARCH INTERESTS:

Simulation of materials interfaces

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