Single-Colloidal Particle Impedance Spectroscopy: Complete Equivalent Circuit Analysis of Polyelectrolyte Microcapsules

We present a high-speed microfluidic technique for characterizing the dielectric properties of individual polyelectrolyte microcapsules with different shell thicknesses using single-particle electrical impedance spectroscopy. Complete equivalent circuit analysis is developed to describe the electrical behavior of solid homogeneous microparticles and shelled microcapsules in suspension. The complete circuit model, which includes the resistance of the shell layer and the capacitance of the inner core, has been used to determine the permittivity and conductivity in the shell of single capsules. The PSpice circuit simulations, based on the developed complete circuit models, are used to analyze the experimental data. The relative permittivity of the polyelectrolyte capsule shell is determined to be 50, and the conductivities of the shells of six- and nine-layer microcapsules are estimated to be 28 +/- 6 and 3.3 +/- 1.7 mS m(-1), respectively.