Abstract: Dinsmore

Prof. Anthony Dinsmore – University of Massachusetts

Title: “How Crystals Form: Colloids as a Tool to Study Phase Transitions”

Abstract: Freezing and melting of crystals are fascinating phenomena that are very common in nature yet difficult to study in the laboratory. Micron-sized particles suspended in solution (colloidal particles) serve as a useful experimental model of these phenomena. Colloidal particles obey the same laws of statistical mechanics that govern how ice melts into water, but they are much larger and slower than molecules, and are thus visible with optical microscopy. By tracking the motions of thousands of individual particles, one can observe phase transitions at the single-‘molecule’ level – and uncover some surprises.