Interplay of anisotropic diffusion and evaporative assembly of magnetic nano-ellipsoids in a pendent colloidal droplet under magnetic field:

In this proposed work, we aim to investigate the real-time structural evolution of the assembly process of colloidal magnetic nanoparticles across a single pendant evaporative droplet under external magnetic fields. We will employ in situ scanning SAXS and XPCS using a micro-focused coherent synchrotron X-ray beam. We aim to understand how the presence of external magnetic fields influences the temporal evolution of the positional correlation and concentration gradient of shape-anisotropic magnetic colloidal nanoparticles across the single droplet during evaporation. Additionally, XPCS will enable us to probe the interplay between dynamic processes occurring at the nanoscale, i.e., the anisotropic particle diffusion and the evaporative self-assembly, with high temporal resolution. The comprehensive understanding of the structural evolution towards kinetically jammed correlated nanostructure will pave the way for the development of advanced functional materials.