Colloidal dispersions exhibit rich equilibrium and nonequilibrium thermodynamic properties, self-assemble into diverse structures at different length scales, and display transport behavior under bulk conditions. In confinement or under geometrical restrictions, new phenomena emerge that have no counterpart when the colloids are embedded in an open, noncurved space. In this review, we focus on the effects of confinement and geometry on the self-assembly and transport of colloids and fluidized granular systems, which serve as model systems. Our goal is to summarize experiments, theoretical approximations and molecular simulations that provide physical insight on the role played by the geometry at the mesoscopic scale. We highlight particular challenges, and show preliminary results based on the covariant Smoluchowski equation, that present promising avenues to study colloidal dynamics in a non-Euclidean geometry.

中文翻译：

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胶体的自组装和传输现象：限制和几何效应


胶体分散体表现出丰富的平衡和非平衡热力学特性，在不同长度尺度上自组装成不同的结构，并在整体条件下表现出传输行为。在限制或几何限制下，当胶体嵌入开放、非弯曲的空间中时，会出现没有对应物的新现象。在这篇综述中，我们重点研究了约束和几何对胶体和流化颗粒系统（作为模型系统）的自组装和传输的影响。我们的目标是总结实验、理论近似和分子模拟，为几何在细观尺度上的作用提供物理见解。我们强调了特定的挑战，并展示了基于协变 Smoluchowski 方程的初步结果，这些结果为研究非欧几里得几何中的胶体动力学提供了有希望的途径。