Ferromagnetic liquid droplets with adjustable magnetic properties

Journal Article · 18 February 2021 · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2017355118 · OSTI ID:1766123

Wu, Xuefei  ^[1]; Streubel, Robert  ^[2]; Liu, Xubo  ^[3]; Kim, Paul Y. ^[4]; Chai, Yu  ^[5]; Hu, Qin ^[6]; Wang, Dong ^[7]; Fischer, Peter ^[8]; Russell, Thomas P.  ^[9]

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1. Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China,, State Key Laboratory of Organic-Inorganic Composites, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China,, Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720,
2. Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720,, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588,, Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588,
3. Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering; Beijing University of Chemical Technology; Beijing 100029; China; ; State Key Laboratory of Organic-Inorganic Composites; Beijing University of Chemical Technology; Beijing 100029; China; ; Materials Sciences Division; Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; Berkeley; CA 94720; ; CAS Key Laboratory of Bio-Inspired Materials and Interfacial Science; Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry; Chinese Academy of Sciences; Beijing 100190; China;
4. Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720,
5. Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720,, Department of Physics, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China,, Molecular Foundry, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720,
6. Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720,, Polymer Science and Engineering Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003,, School of Microelectronics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China,
7. Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China,, State Key Laboratory of Organic-Inorganic Composites, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China,
8. Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720,, Physics Department, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064,
9. Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China,, Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720,, Polymer Science and Engineering Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003,, World Premier Institute–Advanced Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8577, Japan

Significance Structured functional liquids combine mechanical versatility of fluids with solid-state properties, such as ferromagnetism, and offer a route to synthesize and control magnetic liquids for adaptive liquid robotics. Studies on these intriguing materials are only in their nascent state, and a profound understanding of the physical state is still lacking. We use hydrodynamics experiments to probe how the magnetization of ferromagnetic liquid droplets, governed by the assembly and jamming of magnetic nanoparticles at liquid–liquid interfaces, and their response to external stimuli can be tuned by chemical, structural, and magnetic means. Our results highlight the leading role of structural short-range order on magnetic properties, which provide a path toward nano-patterning structured liquids.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE; USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Materials Sciences & Engineering Division
• Grant/Contract Number: AC02-05CH11231
• OSTI ID: 1766123
• Journal Information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Journal Name: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Journal Issue: 8 Vol. 118; ISSN 0027-8424
• Publisher: Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesCopyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English