Recent experimental and computational work has elucidated the importance of kinetic pathways in the formation of helical structures by hydrophobic-charged Janus particles.\footnote{Q. Chen, J.K. Whitmer, \emph{et al.}, Science \textbf{331}, 199 (2011).} Motivated by these findings, we perform free-energy calculations to investigate the equilibrium structure and relative stability of helical aggregates as a function of cluster size and Janus balance. These results simultaneously aid in the interpretation of experimental observations and in the design of building blocks for specific structures.
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Authors
Connor L. Eck
Northwestern University
Jonathan K. Whitmer
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin--Madison
University of Wisconsin--Madison
Qian Chen
University of Illinois at Urbana--Champaign
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Steve Granick
University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign
University of Illinois
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana--Champaign
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
