Charge Fluctuations and Counterion Condensation

Abstract

We predict a condensation phenomenon in an overall neutral system, consisting of a single charged plate and its oppositely charged counterions. Based on the ``two-fluid'' model, in which the counterions are divided into a ``free'' and a ``condensed'' fraction, we argue that for high surface charge, fluctuations can lead to a phase transition in which a large fraction of counterions is condensed. Furthermore, we show that depending on the valence, the condensation is either a first-order or a smooth transition.

16 pages, 1 figure, accepted to be published in PRE

Cited by in corpus (20)

• A Materials Perspective on Casimir and van der Waals Interactions
• Perspective: Coulomb fluids -- weak coupling, strong coupling, in between and beyond
• Sensitivity, Specificity and the Hybridization Isotherms of DNA Chips
• Distribution of counterions near discretely charged planes and rods
• Counterions at Charged Cylinders: Criticality and universality beyond mean-field
• Counterion Condensation and Fluctuation-Induced Attraction
• Self-energy-modified Poisson-Nernst-Planck equations: WKB approximation and finite-difference approaches
• Effects of image charges, interfacial charge discreteness, and surface roughness on the zeta potential of spherical electric double layers
• Solving Fluctuation-Enhanced Poisson-Boltzmann Equations
• Electrostatic correlation induced ion condensation and charge inversion in multivalent electrolytes
• Self-consistent field model for strong electrostatic correlations and inhomogeneous dielectric media
• Effects of counterion fluctuations in a polyelectrolyte brush
• Where the linearized Poisson-Boltzmann cell model fails: (II) the planar case as a prototype study
• Interactions between Charged Particles with bathing Multivalent Counterions: Experiments {\it vs} Dressed Ion Theory
• Electrostatics of Colloidal Particles Confined in Nanochannels: Role of Double-Layer Interactions and Ion-Ion Correlations
• Revealing the Physico-Chemical Basis of Organic Solid-Solid Wetting Deposition: Casimir-Like Forces, Hydrophobic Collapse, and the Role of the Zeta Potential
• Efficient Implementation of the Barnes-Hut Octree Algorithm for Monte Carlo Simulations of Charged Systems
• Coarse-Grained Counterions in the Strong Coupling Limit
• Poisson-Boltzmann Equation with a Random Field for Charged Fluids
• Non-electrostatic interactions as random fields in charged liquids