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arXiv · 1306.5397

Fractional hopping-type motion in columnar mesophase of semi-flexible rod-like particles

Saber Naderi·Emilie Pouget·Pierre Ballesta·Paul van der Schoot·M. Paul Lettinga·Eric Grelet
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Abstract

We report on single-particle dynamics of strongly interacting filamentous fd virus particles in the liquid-crystalline columnar state in aqueous solution. From fluorescence microscopy we find that rare, discrete events take place, in which individual particles engage in sudden, jump-like motion along the main rod axis. The jump length distribution is bimodal and centered at half and full particle lengths. Our Brownian dynamics simulations of hard semi-flexible particles mimic our experiments, and indicate that full-length jumps must be due to collective dynamics in which particles move in string-like fashion in and between neighboring columns, while half jumps arise as a result of particles moving into defects. We find that the finite domain structure of the columnar phase strongly influences the observed dynamics.

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Saber Naderi, Emilie Pouget, Pierre Ballesta, Paul van der Schoot, M. Paul Lettinga, Eric Grelet. 2013-06-23. Fractional hopping-type motion in columnar mesophase of semi-flexible rod-like particles. https://arxiv.org/abs/1306.5397

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