We present experimental evidence of hydrodynamic assisted escape from a potential well. Holographic optical
tweezers are used to landscape a bistable system composed of two optical traps, separated by 400nm as seen
by a Si colloid of radius 400nm. We observe thermally activated transitions between the two metastable states
in the system with transition rates that are in agreement with Kramers theory. Introducing a second bistable
system into our experiment allows us to study the behaviour of thermally activated transitions in the presence of
hydrodynamic interactions. The two bistable systems are placed in a line separated by a few micrometers. Using
camera tracking technologies we track each of the two beads as they hop back and forth within their respective
system. The escape events are recorded and any correlation between the two systems are then computed. We
consistently find that the number of observed correlations are as expected and that the number of correlations
having a positive coefficient are greater than the number of correlations having a negative coefficient. The
hydrodynamic interactions assist in the escape from a metastable potential. Our results are particularly relevant
in the context of concentrated colloidal suspensions where hydrodynamic interactions could lead to the formation
of higher mobility paths along which it is easier to overcome barriers to structural rearrangement.
Access to the requested content is limited to institutions that have purchased or subscribe to SPIE eBooks.
You are receiving this notice because your organization may not have SPIE eBooks access.*
*Shibboleth/Open Athens users─please
sign in
to access your institution's subscriptions.
To obtain this item, you may purchase the complete book in print or electronic format on
SPIE.org.
INSTITUTIONAL Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.
PERSONAL Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.