Formation of clusters in a mixture of spherical colloidal particles oppositely charged

On the basis of Monte Carlo simulations, we have investigated the microscopic configurations of a binary mixture of spherical colloidal particles oppositely charged. At low temperatures and low densities, the model presents a high coupling between particles of opposite charge which produces independent clusters in the sample. We have studied cluster distributions varying the salt concentration in the solution. We find common features between our model and that formed by linear polyelectrolyte and oppositely charged macroions. Also, cluster distribution attains to reproduce the critical temperature behavior previously studied in this model, i.e., we can interpret the thermodynamic behaviour of the model considering microscopic aspects. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.