Enlargement of Grains of Silica Colloidal Crystals by Centrifugation in an Inverted-Triangle Internal-Shaped Container

We successfully fabricated large grains of silica colloidal crystals in an inverted-triangle internal-shaped container (inverted-triangle container) by centrifugation. The largest grain in the container was much larger than that in a container which has a flat bottom and constant width (flat-bottomed container). The edged bottom of the inverted-triangle container eliminated the number of the grains, and then the broadened shape of the container effectively widened the grains. (c) 2013 The Japan Society of Applied Physics