title: Local size segregation in polydisperse hard sphere fluids
abstract: The structure of polydisperse hard sphere fluids, in the presence of a wall, is studied by the Rosenfeld density functional theory. Within this approach, the local excess free energy depends on only four combinations of the full set of density fields. The case of continuous polydispersity thereby becomes tractable. We predict, generically, an oscillatory size segregation close to the wall, and connect this, by a perturbation theory for narrow distributions, with the reversible work for changing the size of one particle in a monodisperse reference fluid.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, JCMB The King's Buildings, Mayfield Road, EH9 3JZ Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pagonabarraga
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Cates
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Ackland