Electro-optical study of the correlation between dimensions and polarizability of particles in colloid systems

The applicability of methods of molecular electro-optics for the study of colloid systems is analyzed. It is shown that the basic formulas of molecular electro-optics can be applied for the calculation of electrical and geometric characteristics of particles of colloid size. The basic integral equations describing electro-optical effects in colloid systems are presented to find distributions of particles over their size and polarizability anisotropy. The accuracy of their solutions is evaluated by mathematical simulation. Studying the dichroism induced by an external electric field in aqueous colloids of anisylidenbenzidine and graphite, the polarizability and size distribution functions are found for particles with an “optical weight.” From the resulting distribution functions, the statistical dependences of the polarizability anisotropy of those particles on their size are found and analyzed.