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Experimental control of patchy interactions promises new routes for the assembly of complex colloidal structures, but remains challenging. Here, we investigate the role of patch width in the assembly of patchy colloidal particles assembled by critical Casimir forces. The particles are composed of a hydrophobic dumbbell with an equatorial hydrophilic polymer shell, and are synthesized to have well-defined patch-to-shell area ratios. Patch-to-patch binding is achieved in near-critical binary solvents, in which the particle interaction strength and range are controlled by the temperature-dependent solvent correlation length. Upon decreasing the patch-to-shell area ratio, we observe a pronounced change of the bonding morphology towards directed single-bonded configurations, as clearly reflected in the formation of chain-like structures. Computer simulations using an effective critical Casimir pair potential for the patches show that the morphology change results from the geometric exclusion of the increasingly thick hydrophilic particle shells. These results highlight the experimental control of patchy interactions through the engineering of the building blocks on the way towards rationally designed colloidal superstructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impurity-induced defects play a crucial role for the properties of crystals, but little is known about impurities with anisotropic shape. Here, we study how colloidal dumbbells distort and interact with a hexagonal crystal of charged colloidal spheres at a fluid interface. We find that subtle differences in the dumbbell length determine whether it induces a local distortion of the lattice or traps a dislocation, and determine how the dumbbell moves inside the repulsive hexagonal lattice. Our results provide new routes toward controlling material properties and understanding fundamental questions in phase transitions through particle-bound dislocations.

Cluster formation of microscopic swimmers is key to the formation of biofilms and colonies, efficient motion and nutrient uptake, but, in the absence of other interactions, requires high swimmer concentrations to occur. Here we experimentally and numerically show that cluster formation can be dramatically enhanced by an anisotropic swimmer shape. We analyze a class of model microswimmers with a shape that can be continuously tuned from spherical to bent and straight rods. In all cases, clustering can be described by Michaelis-Menten kinetics governed by a single scaling parameter that depends on particle density and shape only. We rationalize these shape-dependent dynamics from the interplay between interlocking probability and cluster stability. The bent rod shape promotes assembly in an interlocking fashion even at vanishingly low particle densities and we identify the most efficient shape to be a semicircle. Our work provides key insights into how shape can be used to rationally design out-of-equilibrium self-organization, key to creating active functional materials and processes that require two-component assembly with high fidelity., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

We present the synthesis of polymer colloids with continuously tunable anisotropy dimensions: patchiness, roughness, and branching. Our method makes use of controlled fusion of multiple protrusions on highly cross-linked polymer particles produced by seeded emulsion polymerization. Carefully changing the synthesis conditions, we can tune the number of protrusions, or branching, of the obtained particles from spheres with one to three patches to raspberry-like particles with multiple protrusions. In addition to that, roughness is generated on the seed particles by adsorption of secondary nucleated particles during synthesis. The size of the roughness relative to the smooth patches can be continuously tuned by the initiator, surfactant, and styrene concentrations. Seed colloids chemically different from the protrusions induce patches of different chemical nature. The underlying generality of the synthesis procedure allows for application to a variety of seed particle sizes and materials. We demonstrate the use of differently sized polyNIPAM (poly-N-isopropylacrylamide), as well as polystyrene and magnetite filled polyNIPAM seed particles, the latter giving rise to magnetically anisotropic colloids. The high yield together with the uniform, anisotropic shape make them interesting candidates for use as smart building blocks in self-assembling systems.