M Mikulis et al 2004 J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 16 7909 doi:10.1088/0953-8984/16/45/013
M Mikulis1,2, C J Olson Reichhardt1, C Reichhardt1, R T Scalettar2 and G T Zimányi2
Show affiliationsUsing numerical simulations, we study colloidal ordering and disordering on two-dimensional periodic substrates where the number of colloids per substrate minima is two or three. The colloids form dimer or trimer states with orientational ordering, referred to as colloidal molecular crystals. At a fixed temperature such that, in the absence of a substrate, the colloids are in a triangular floating solid state, upon increasing the substrate strength we find a transition to an ordered colloidal molecular crystal state, followed by a transition to a disordered state where the colloids still form dimers or trimers but the orientational order is lost. These results are in agreement with recent experiments.
Soft matter, liquids and polymers
Issue 45 (17 November 2004)
Received 23 April 2004, in final form 2 September 2004
Published 29 October 2004
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