Angle‐dependent light scattering by highly uniform colloidal rod‐shaped microparticles: Experiment and simulation

While extensive theoretical work has been devoted to analyzing scattering behavior for nonspherical particles, few experimental studies of the light‐scattering properties of such particles are available, largely because of the difficulty of synthesizing such particles with uniform geometries. Here we report the synthesis of highly uniform, volume‐equivalent rod‐shaped colloidal particles prepared from their commercial spherical counterparts, on which we performed light scattering experiments as a function of scattering angle for micro rods with varying aspect ratio and volume. These results were compared to values calculated using the T‐Matrix method. Good agreement with theoretical predictions was found for the experimentally measured scattering cross sections and the angular dependence of the scattering intensity. An increase in the forward scattering intensity is observed and predicted for particles with larger aspect ratios relative to their volume equivalent spheres, with only minor differences observed at both mid‐range and backscattering angles. Furthermore, the light scattering results for the rod‐shaped particles did not show the scattering fringes seen in scattering by the spheres, indicating that as three‐dimensional symmetry is broken, the associated Lorenz–Mie resonances are strongly attenuated. This observation also was predicted by theory. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2016 , 54, 1889–1895     

An experimental technique for characterizing dispersion in compounds of particulates in thermoplastics using small-angle light scattering

An experimental technique based on small-angle light scattering for characterizing dispersion of particles and presence of agglomerates in compounds of minerals in thermoplastics is described. The technique is critically discussed in terms of the Mie and Rayleigh-Gans theories of scattering. An experimental study of dispersion in compounds of polypropylene and polystyrene with calcium carbonate by mixing variously on two roll mills, an internal mixer, and a modular intermeshing co-rotating twin screw extruder.     

Influence of polydispersity on the light scattering of concentrated dispersions of spherical particles

The light scattering of mixtures of hard spherical particles of two sizes is derived in the Percus-Yevick approximation, assuming that the light scattering intensity of each particle is proportional to its volume squared. A rather simple expression is obtained which is used to assess the influence of polydispersity on the light scattering of spherical particles at high concentrations.     

Electronic dephasing in bimetallic gold-silver nanoparticles examined by single particle spectroscopy

The scattering spectra of single gold, silver, and bimetallic gold-silver particles (both core-shell and alloyed) have been examined using dark-field microscopy. The results show that the plasmon resonances for the bimetallic particles are broader than those of the pure silver or pure gold particles. However, plots of the width of the plasmon resonance vs resonance frequency for the core-shell and alloyed samples are very similar. This implies that the broadening is due to the frequency dependence of the dielectric constants of the particles. For the core-shell particles, scattering at the interface between the two metals does not seem to be a significant effect.     

Manipulating the optical properties of pyramidal nanoparticle arrays

This paper reports the orientation-dependent optical properties of two-dimensional arrays of anisotropic metallic nanoparticles. These studies were made possible by our simple procedure to encapsulate and manipulate aligned particles having complex three-dimensional (3D) shapes inside a uniform dielectric environment. Using dark field or scattering spectroscopy, we investigated the plasmon resonances of 250-nm Au pyramidal shells embedded in a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) matrix. Interestingly, we discovered that the scattering spectra of these particle arrays depended sensitively on the direction and polarization of the incident white light relative to the orientation of the pyramidal shells. Theoretical calculations using the discrete dipole approximation support the experimentally observed dependence on particle orientation with respect to incident field. This work presents an approach to manipulate--by hand--ordered arrays of particles over cm(2) areas and provides new insight into the relationship between the shape of well-defined, 3D particles and their supported plasmon resonance modes.     

Mesoscopic structure formation in colloidal aggregation and gelation

Recent small-angle light scattering experiments have revealed that diffusively aggregating spherical particles develop structure on a mesoscopic length scale (∼ tens of particles). The mesoscopic structural length scale persists even when the aggregation proceeds to the formation of a space-spanning network (a gel). We review the technique of small-angle light scattering, survey the experimental evidence for mesoscopic structure formation, discuss attempts at understanding these experimental observations by computer simulation of irreversible and reversible diffusion-limited cluster aggregation (DLCA), and propose a coherent picture for the understanding of non-equilibrium aggregation in the context of phase transitions.     

Efficient numerical method for locating Feshbach resonances of ultracold molecules in external fields

Collision properties of atoms and molecules in low temperature gases can be controlled by applying an external magnetic or electric field. The external field shifts the energy levels of the colliding particles, which gives rise to Feshbach resonances modifying the scattering cross sections. The resonances occur at particular magnitudes of the external field, where a bound state of the collision complex is degenerate with a scattering state. The positions of the resonances in the external field are usually identified by computing either the scattering cross sections or the bound states of the collision complex as functions of the external field magnitude. We propose a more efficient method for locating Feshbach resonances that requires neither of these computations. In particular, we show that the positions of Feshbach resonances can be identified by computing the log-derivative of the total wave function in a classically allowed region as a function of the external field strength. This procedure is particularly useful for locating narrow Feshbach resonances that may be hard to identify with the other methods.     

A refined He-LiF(001) potential from selective adsorption resonances measured with high-resolution helium spin-echo spectroscopy

The authors have developed a new experimental approach for measuring gas-surface selective adsorption resonances with much higher energy resolution and over a wider range of kinematic conditions than has previously been possible. The technique involves using a 3He spin-echo spectrometer as a Fourier transform helium atom scattering apparatus. The authors applied the technique to the He-LiF(001) system. They developed a new empirical potential for the He-LiF(001) system by analyzing and refining the best existing potentials in the light of the new data set. Following an initial free-particle model analysis, the authors used exact close coupling scattering calculations to compare the existing potentials with the new experimental data set. Systematic differences are observed between the two. The existing potentials are modified by simple transformations to give a refined potential that is consistent with and fully reproduces the experimental data. Their technique represents a new approach for developing very high precision empirical potentials in order to test first principles theory.     

Coexisting aggregates in mixed aerosol OT and cholesterol microemulsions

Dynamic light scattering and NMR spectroscopic experimental evidence suggest the coexistence of two compositionally different self-assembled particles in solution. The self-assembled particles form in solutions containing water, Aerosol OT (AOT, sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate) surfactant, and cholesterol in cyclohexane. In a similar series of studies carried out in 1-octanol only one aggregate type, that is, reverse micelles, is observed. Dynamic light scattering measurements reveal the presence of two different types of aggregates in the microemulsions formed in cyclohexane, demonstrating the coexistence of two compositionally distinct structures with very similar Gibbs energies. One particle type consists of standard AOT reverse micelles while the second type of particle consists of submicellar aggregates including cholesterol as well as small amounts of AOT and water. In microemulsions employing 1-octanol as the continuous medium, AOT reverse micelles form in a dispersed solution of cholesterol in 1-octanol. Although the size distribution of self-assembled particles is well-known for many different systems, evidence for simultaneous formation of two distinctly sized particles in solution that are chemically different is unprecedented. The ability to form microemulsion solutions that contain coexisting particles may have important applications in drug formulation and administration, particularly as applied to drug delivery using cholesterol as a targeting agent.     

Plasmon resonance broadening in spheroidal metal particles

An analytical expression for the surface scattering contribution to the width of plasmon resonances in spheroidally shaped metal particles is derived. The result is compared with analogous quantum-mechanical expressions.     

Estimation of morphological characteristics of single particles from light scattering data in flow cytometry

Numerical methods for solving the reverse problem of light scattering for single particles and a variety of experimental results have been reviewed. In particular, the two-dimensional Mie scattering method for the estimation of sizes and refractive indices of single particles has been developed. The method of triple two-dimensional Mie scattering has been elaborated, which extends the range of particle sizes with correct solutions of the reverse light scattering problem. The flying light scattering indicatrix method, which allows the estimation of the parameters of spherical particles, is presented. The results of the use of a flow cytometer of standard design for the anaysis of milk microflora and for an AIDS immunoassay by latex agglutination are given. The design of a scanning flow cytometer is considered. The results of measuring the light scattering from polystyrene latex particles are given.Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 7, pp. 1181–1190, July, 1994.The author is grateful to A. K. Petrov and M. A. Kamkhe for supporting the work on cytometry, E. G. Saprykin for useful discussion and comments, G. Alm (Swedish Agricultural Univ.) for initiating the interest to immunological studies, and A. V. Chernyshev, T. S. Mashnin, V. I. Prots, and A. A. Doroshkin for cooperation.     

Study of colloidal particle Brownian aggregation by low-coherence fiber optic dynamic light scattering

The aggregation kinetics of particles in dense polystyrene latex suspensions is studied by low-coherence fiber optic dynamic light scattering. Low-coherence fiber optic dynamic light scattering is used to measure the hydrodynamic radius of the aggregates. The aggregation kinetics data obtained can be fitted into a single exponential function, which is the characteristic of slow aggregation. It is found that the aggregation rate of particles increased with higher electrolyte levels and with larger particle concentrations. The experimental results can be explained by use of the Derjaruin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeer (DLVO) theory.     

Multiple light scattering and cavitation in two phase tough polymers

In glassy polymers toughened by inclusion of nanometric rubber particles, the high impact strength is due to cavitation of the rubber particles followed by the appearance of microshear bands in the glassy matrix. These materials are mostly opalescent or even opaque, which renders difficult any optical investigation of the damage process. Simple light scattering techniques were employed in earlier work to study the onset of damage in transparent toughened polymers. As demonstrated in one previous paper, multiple light scattering can be employed to further investigate opaque materials and hence highly damaged polymers. Coherent light backscattering in strongly opaque materials arises from the fact that an incident light beam, if not absorbed, is scattered successively by several scatterers before emerging again at the front surface of the body. The so‐called coherent backscattering cone may be analyzed in terms of the size, shape, and density of the scatterers. In the present work, this technique was applied to a semicrystalline polymer and to rubber toughened PMMA containing core‐shell (hard core) particles, an initially transparent material which becomes progressively opaque in the course of mechanical damage under stress. During the damage process, both the number of cavitated particles and their individual void fraction may increase, and a cavitated particle acts as a light scatterer of cross‐section proportional to its void content. The weakness of such scattering techniques resides in the fact that the light scattering pattern is determined by the product of the density of the scatterers and their scattering cross‐section. Consequently, the number of damaged particles cannot be separated from the particle void content. This study describes a new method based on the superposition of small elastic unloadings on the main tensile strain. During these unloadings, the number of damaged particles remains constant but their optical cross‐section changes, thus leading to a supplementary equation describing the scattering properties of the body. Hence, the number of cavitated particles and their individual void fraction may be calculated separately from the experimental data. Since the use of coherent light backscattering to investigate damage mechanisms in polymers is relatively new, the paper also recalls the basic principles of multiple light scattering. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 37: 113–126, 1999     

Correlated Rayleigh Scattering Spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy Studies of Au-Ag Bimetallic Nanoboxes and Nanocages

The optical properties of hollow nanoparticles (Au-Ag nanoboxes and nanocages) were investigated by recording Rayleigh scattering spectra of single particles, whose morphology and composition had been analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). This was achieved by depositing the particles on optically transparent substrates with registration marks, which are compatible with SEM imaging. Fitting the experimental spectra to a Lorentzian function yields the frequencies and homogeneous line widths of the plasmon resonance for the particles. The resonances are extremely broad, with dephasing times of 2-5 fs. Analysis of the line width data using the dimensions determined by SEM shows that the broadening is due to a combination of electron-surface scattering and radiation damping. The sensitivity of the plasmon resonance to the dielectric constant of the environment was also investigated by adding a drop of water to the substrate. The nanoboxes show similar dielectric sensitivities compared to other metal nanoparticle systems. A significant increase in the line width was also observed for the nanoboxes in water compared with air. This was attributed to increased radiation damping in the environment with a higher dielectric constant. Both the red shift and the increase in line width are reversible.     

Electro-optic characteristics of optically interacting beta-FeOOH particles

In this article the influence of multiple light scattering on the basic electro-optic parameters of optically dense colloidal particles is analyzed. The model system is an aqueous suspension of monodisperse ellipsoidal beta-FeOOH particles that displays large electric light scattering variations, including sign reversal, at very low particle volume fractions (two orders of magnitude below the critical concentration of particle electric interactions). The scaling method permits the relative variations in particle electric polarizability to be followed and its relaxation frequency to be determined. Particle rotational relaxation frequency and the phase shift of the responses at this frequency are obtained by the alternating component of the effects. Characteristic field intensity curves in the low-frequency range are used to follow the relative changes induced by the slow electrokinetic effect. The experimental results show that, despite the drastic variations in the effects with volume fraction, the basic electro-optic parameters are independent of multiple scattering and can be adequately determined for any particle concentration, excluding a narrow range in the vicinity of the electro-optic sign reversal. The investigation demonstrates that the dependence of the frequency behavior of aqueous beta-FeOOH on particle volume fraction reported in the literature is due not to optical interactions but to variation of particle surface electric state in the process of dilution.     

Optical effects in stratified colloidal particles near transparency

Non-isotropic scattering patterns showing a minimum for small and almost transparent core-shell particles are discussed. It is shown that for any particle size, close to transparency, a core-shell particle behaves optically differently from a non-structured particle due to the presence of a minimum in the scattering pattern. Transparency criteria are discussed in the light of the non-isotropic character of the scattered light. Direct experimental evidence of the existence of this minimum is presented and compared with the theoretical predictions of the scattering by colloids having a distribution of particle composition.     

Interpretation of light scattering from supermolecular structures in liquid systems by master curves

By a detailed analysis of light scattering curves, a more complete characterization of colloidal particles may be achieved. For this purpose, a fitting procedure based on theoretical master curves of models of polydisperse systems of homogeneous spheres and Gaussian coils is presented. The use of a suitable logarithmic distribution function makes it possible to separate the influence of polydispersity from that of particle size on the shape of the scattering curve. A double logarithmic plot of master curves reduces the fitting procedure to translations of the experimental curves. The reliability and accuracy of this procedure are demonstrated by light scattering results on solutions of a polyelectrolyte complex with variation of salt content.     

Evanescent Wave Light Scattering A Fusion of the Evanescent Wave and Light Scattering Techniques to the Study of Colloids and Polymers Near the Interface

The evanescent wave light scattering technique, which is produced by a fusion of the evanescent wave technique and light scattering technique, is a very powerful and useful tool for investigation of colloidal particles and polymers near the surface and interfaces. We have developed two kinds of evanescent wave light scattering apparatuses. One is the evanescent wave dynamic light scattering (EVDLS) technique and the other is the evanescent wave light scattering microscope (EVLSM). By EVDLS, the diffusion behavior of a colloidal particle near the interface can be extracted quantitatively as a function of the distance from the interface. The diffusion coefficient was smaller than those for particles in bulk, reflecting electrostatic and hydrodynamic interactions. By EVLSM, the interaction potential profile between a colloidal particle and the surface in dispersion can be evaluated directly. EVLSM will play an important role in colloidal interaction studies, especially at a low ionic strength. It is also pointed out that a particle dynamics study is also possible by the EVLSM technique. A new field will be developed in colloid science and polymer science by application of the evanescent wave light scattering technique, i. e. a fusion of the evanescent light and a light scattering techniques.     

Nanoparticle immunoagglutination Rayleigh scatter assay to complement microparticle immunoagglutination Mie scatter assay in a microfluidic device

In this work, particle immunoagglutination assays for pathogen detection, utilizing light scattering measurements at a fixed angle from incident light delivery, are explored in both Rayleigh and Mie scatter regimes through scatter intensity simulations and compared to experimental results. The average size of immunoagglutinated particles obtained from microscope images correspond to the particle size parameter from simulations. Mie scatter measurements yield a greater signal increase with increasing pathogen concentration than Rayleigh scatter measurements, but with a non-monotonic relationship that is not observed in the Rayleigh scatter regime. These two similar yet distinctly different sources of information could easily be integrated into a single device through fabrication of a simple microfluidic device containing two y-channels, each for performing the respective light scattering measurement. Escherichia coli was used as a representative target, and detected in a microfluidic device down to a concentration of 1 colony forming units (CFU) per mL.     

Electron scattering from tetrafluoroethylene

We report experimental results for electron scattering from tetrafluoroethylene, C2F4, obtained from measurements in two laboratories. An extensive set of differential, integral, and momentum transfer cross sections is provided for elastic scattering for incident electron energies from 1 to 100 eV and inelastic (vibrational excitation) scattering for incident electron energies at 3, 6, 7.5, 8, and 15 eV, and for scattering angles ranging from 10 degrees to 130 degrees. To highlight the role of intermediate negative ions (resonances) in the scattering process we have also measured excitation functions for elastic scattering and vibrational excitation of the ground electronic state of C2F4 for incident energies between 1.5 and 20 eV. Our results are compared with recent theoretical calculations and a limited number of other experimental results.