DENSITY-FUNCTIONAL APPROACH TO THE STRUCTURE OF HOMOGENEOUS COLLOIDALDISPERSION

We employ a simple density functional approach to predict the radial d istribution and other structure related functions for a model homogene ous colloidal dispersion. The scheme is based on an interconnection, f irst pointed out by Percus, between the density of an inhomogeneous fl uid in the field of an external potential and the radial distribution function of the corresponding uniform fluid, if the external potential is chosen as the pair potential itself. The two-particle direct corre lation function of the homogeneous colloidal dispersion which is requi red as input is taken from the rescaled mean spherical approximation f or particles interacting via screened Coulomb potential. Both perturba tive and nonperturbative weighted density approaches are employed and the calculated quantities are shown to agree well with results from ot her sources.