Effect of dielectrophoretic force in the self-assembly process of electrosprayed nanoparticles

In this work the effect of the dielectrophoretic force (DEP) in the self-assembly process of nanoparticles electrosprayed onto a substrate, is examined. DEP force is originated by the electric field created by the electrospray gun and by the distortion of the field created by the effective dipole of each nanoparticle. It is also shown that the modulus of this force is large when the distance between particles is few times its diameter, provided the medium is wet and the electric field is not switched off.