Lattice Model Results for Pattern Formation in a Mixture with Competing Interactions

Abstract

A monolayer consisting of two types of particles, with energetically favored alternating stripes of the two components, is studied by Monte Carlo simulations and within a mesoscopic theory. We consider a triangular lattice model and assume short-range attraction and long-range repulsion between particles of the same kind, as well as short-range repulsion and long-range attraction for the cross-interaction. The structural evolution of the model upon increasing temperature is studied for equal chemical potentials of the two species. We determine the structure factor, the chemical potential–density isotherms, the specific heat, and the compressibility, and show how these thermodynamic functions are associated with the spontaneous formation of stripes with varying degrees of order.

Keywords

• colloidal self-assembly
• spontaneous pattern formation
• inhomogeneous mixtures
• Monte Carlo simulations
• self-assembled stripes
• theory for mixtures with competing interactions