Lattice properties of two-dimensional charge-stabilized colloidal crystals

Abstract

In this paper, electrostatic interaction in two-dimensional colloidal crystals obeying the non-linear Poisson-Boltzmann equation is studied numerically. We first give an overview of the recently developed approach to study of the lattice properties of colloidal crystals. The central point of the theory is determination of the force constants, which are the coefficients of the energy quadratic form of the crystal. Particular attention is given to the symmetry considerations. Some prospective topics of research are briefly discussed.