Effect of the number of patches on the growth of networks of patchy colloids on substrates

摘要

We investigate numerically the irreversible aggregation of patchy spherical colloids on a flat substrate. We consider n-patch particles and characterise the dependence of the irreversible aggregation kinetics on n. For all values of n considered in this study, the growing interface of the aggregate is in the Kardar-Parisi-Zhang universality class, although the bulk structure exhibits a rich dependence on n. In particular, the bulk density varies with n, and the network is more ordered for particles with fewer patches. Preferred orientations of the bonds are also observed for networks of particles with low n.