Isotopic Effect on the Gel and Glass Formation of a Charged Colloidal Clay: Laponite.

The time evolution of both dynamic and static structure factors of a charged colloidal clay, Laponite, dispersed in both HO and DO solvents has been investigated through multiangle dynamic light scattering (DLS) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) as a function of weight concentration. The aging phenomenology and the formation of arrested states, both gel and glass, are preserved in DO, while the dynamics is slowed down with respect to water. These findings are important to understand the role played by the solvent in the interparticle interactions and for techniques such as neutron scattering and nuclear magnetic resonance that allow for the extension of the accessible scattering vectors and time scales.