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Brownian Motion 1

The document discusses Brownian motion and describes a lab involving computer simulations to understand it. Brownian motion is the random movement of particles suspended in a fluid caused by collisions with the fluid's molecules. The lab uses simulations to show how temperature and particle size affect motion and to calculate diffusion coefficient, Boltzmann constant, and Avogadro's number from simulated particle tracking data.

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35 views4 pages

Brownian Motion 1

The document discusses Brownian motion and describes a lab involving computer simulations to understand it. Brownian motion is the random movement of particles suspended in a fluid caused by collisions with the fluid's molecules. The lab uses simulations to show how temperature and particle size affect motion and to calculate diffusion coefficient, Boltzmann constant, and Avogadro's number from simulated particle tracking data.

Uploaded by

ApS x Vnom
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Brownian Motion 1

In 1905, Albert Einstein published several journal articles, any one of which would have
been a seminal paper for an entire career. The most well-known of these articles was
the Theory of Special Relativity. Another theoretically explained the photoelectric effect,
for which Einstein was awarded the Noble Prize. This week’s lab is the first of three
focusing on the subject of one of his other articles published this same year – Brownian
Motion.

Goals:
1. Understand how microscopic phenomena can lead to a macroscopic effect.

Equipment:
1. Computer simulations

Explanation of Lab:
In 1827 Robert Brown made a strange observation. While examining minute pollen
grains under a microscope, Brown noticed particles within the pollen grains undergoing
continuous, random, jittery motion. He noted that dust particles “danced” as vigorously
as the pollen grains so Brown concluded that the motion was not due to the particles
being alive. It would be 78 years before Einstein published his theoretical explanation of
this phenomenon, which became known as “Brownian motion”. Einstein was able to
describe Brownian motion as a diffusion process, connecting the kinetic theory of heat
with the visible motion of minute particles. His result rested on the atomic nature of
matter and, when experiments by Perrin and others confirmed his work, the atomic
theory of mater was put on much firmer footing.

Einstein’s theory states that the diffusion coefficient for spherical particles dissolved in a
liquid is

𝑘 𝑇
𝐵
𝐷 = 6𝜋𝑟𝜂 Eq. 1

where kB is Boltzmann’s constant, T is temperature in Kelvin, η is the viscosity of the


liquid, and r is the radius of the particle. The Boltzmann constant is a fundamental
constant of nature that must be determined experimentally. Viscosity is a measure of
the drag forces exerted on a particle as it pushes its way through a liquid. Maple syrup
has a much higher viscosity than water. The diffusion coefficient has units of m 2/s and is
a measure of how quickly particles diffuse from areas of high concentration to low
concentration without convection currents to carry them. You can experience diffusion
by opening a bottle of cologne in a still room and paying attention to how long it takes
the particles of cologne (as detected by smell) to travel different distances across the
room.

Part of Einstein’s insight was recognizing that the above equation could be applied to
visible particles like pollen grains, and he was able to show that the mean square
displacement of a particle after a time interval Δt depended on the diffusion constant for
the particle,

〈𝑥 2 〉 = 2𝐷∆𝑡 Eq. 2

This week’s lab involves simulations of the experiment you will be conducting over the
next two weeks involving microscopic polystyrene spheres. Looking at these simulations
should prepare you for the analysis to come.

Aside: The Boltzmann constant is related to Avogadro’s number, NA, and the ideal gas
constant, R, via
𝑅
𝑁𝐴 = 𝑘 Eq. 3
𝐵

where R = 8.314 J/(K mol). Using this, the accepted value of the Boltzmann constant
can be determined and is kB = 1.381 x 10-23 J/(K mol).

Suggested Procedure:
Part 1 – Understanding the Goal:
Open this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6CCR7Yl1-8

In this video, 1 µm polystyrene beads at a magnification were filmed through a


microscope at approximately 400x magnification. (In week 2, you will make your
own video!) Watch it several times. The spheres wiggle and jiggle, not because
they are alive but because they are being bombarded by moving water molecules.
The water molecules are much too small to be seen with the naked eye. Your work
over the next two weeks will prove these molecules exist.

Part 2 – Understanding the Basics 1


Open this simulation: http://www.fiz-ix.com/wp-
content/uploads/2014/01/brownianParticles2DPeriodicBoundaries.html

This simulation allows you to set the magnification factor, the number and radius of
the spheres, and the temperature of the simulation. After modifying these
parameters, the reset button must be pressed before any changes take effect.
Answer the following questions:
1. Holding the radius constant, what effect does increasing the temperature have on
the motion of the spheres? (Hint: A large increase in temperature may be
necessary to create an observable effect.)
2. Holding the temperature constant, what effect does increasing the radius have on
the motion of the spheres? (Hint: You may have to switch to the 100x
magnification and use a smaller number of spheres to see the effect.)

Part 3 – Understanding the Basics 2


If a time-lapse video of the motion of a single particle undergoing Brownian motion
was filmed with each frame Δt apart, then one could measure the displacement of
the particle from frame to frame. (In other words, you would be measuring the
displacement after each successive Δt.) The mean squared displacement, <x2>, is
calculated by first squaring each of these displacements then averaging them. This
is what is used in Einstein’s relation, Eq. 2.

In this portion of the lab, you will simulate the data analysis portion of the upcoming
experiment. In the process, you will gain an understanding of why it is the mean
square displacement, <x2>, that matters and not simply the average displacement.

Open this simulation: http://www.fiz-ix.com/wp-


content/uploads/2014/01/brownianParticles2DWithDXOutput.html

This simulation is similar to the previous. However, there are a few noticeable
changes. First, you can no longer adjust the parameters (i.e. temperature, radius
and number of spheres, etc.) The values for the parameters are given at the top of
the simulation.

Second, this simulation is a simulated time-lapse video with 5 s between frames. It


runs for 200 “frames” and then the frame-to-frame x and y displacements for the red
sphere are displayed.

1. Run the simulation and then copy and paste the displacements into an Excel
spreadsheet.
2. Assume the x and y dimensions are statistically independent. This allows you
to aggregate the x and y data into one big set of displacements before doing
the calculations below. To do so, copy and paste the y dimension data below
the x dimension data.
3. The data from the simulation is given in µm. Perform a unit conversion so
that the displacements are in meters.
4. Calculate the average displacement.
5. Square each displacement (not the average displacement) and then average.
This is the mean squared displacement.
6. Use the mean square displacement, Einstein’s equation (Eq. 2) and the
parameters listed at the top of the simulation to calculate the diffusion
constant. Watch your units!
7. Use your answer to step 6 and Eq. 1 to calculate the Boltzmann constant.
8. Use your answer to step 7 and Eq. 3 to estimate Avogadro’s number.

Answer the following questions:


1. What is the average displacement of the red sphere? Why?
2. Why is the average displacement not a useful value?
3. What is the mean square displacement?
4. Why is the mean square displacement a useful value?
5. What is the diffusion coefficient?
6. What is your calculated value for the Boltzmann constant? How does it
compare to the accepted value?
7. What is your calculated value for Avogadro’s number? How does it compare
to the accepted value?

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