Title:
Markov state model-based optimal control for colloidal self-assembly

dc.contributor.advisor Grover, Martha A.
dc.contributor.author Tang, Xun
dc.contributor.committeeMember Behrens, Sven Holger
dc.contributor.committeeMember Kawajiri, Yoshiaki
dc.contributor.committeeMember Realff, Matthew J.
dc.contributor.committeeMember Zhang, Fumin
dc.contributor.department Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
dc.date.accessioned 2017-01-11T14:03:05Z
dc.date.available 2017-01-11T14:03:05Z
dc.date.created 2016-12
dc.date.issued 2016-09-28
dc.date.submitted December 2016
dc.date.updated 2017-01-11T14:03:06Z
dc.description.abstract Colloidal self-assembly is widely studied as a promising route to manufacture highly ordered structures for applications as metamaterials. While near-equilibrium self-assembly could produce defect-free crystal, the time required is usually unmanageable in practical applications. On the contrary, rapid assembly via out-of-equilibrium approaches could reduce the amount of process time, but the assembled structure is usually terminated in defective states. Therefore, a gap exists between the speed and the quality of the structure in a colloidal self-assembly system. To overcome this challenge, this thesis proposes a model-based optimization framework for optimal feedback control over a colloidal self-assembly process for rapid assembly of defect-free two-dimensional crystals. The proposed framework features: first, the use of an externally applied electric field as a global actuator to influence the particle movement; second, the use of two order parameters to represent the high-dimensional system in a reduced dimension state space; third, the use of the Markov state model to capture the stochasticity in the system; fourth, the use of dynamic programming to design the optimal control policy; and fifth, the use of an optical microscope for in situ measurements as feedback. The feasibility of the framework is first demonstrated with a static optimal control policy, and its performance is evaluated against fast quench and near-equilibrium approaches. The framework is then expanded to construct a time-dependent optimal control policy, and the performance is compared with widely used time-varying control strategies in both simulation and experiments. The refinement of the framework, more specifically, the construction of the Markov state model is also revisited for better efficiency. The major contributions of this thesis include: (1) it proposes a novel approach to rapidly control colloidal self-assembly processes for perfect crystal with optimal control theories; (2) it demonstrates for the first time in lab, the realization of optimal feedback control of a colloidal self-assembly process; (3) it reveals the benefits of feedback in a stochastic process control, not only to compensate for model inaccuracy, but also to shorten the process time; (4) it also investigates the Markov state model accuracy and provides a more efficient construction of accurate Markov state models. The framework in this study is built on first-principle concepts, and it can be generalized to any molecular, nano-, or micro-scale assembly process where there exists a global actuator to affect the dynamics, a model to represent the relation between the actuator and the system, and a measurement of system state for feedback. Since micron-sized colloidal particles also serve as model systems to study the phase transition behavior and crystallization kinetics for atomic and molecular crystals, the framework can also be extended to these systems for optimal control.
dc.description.degree Ph.D.
dc.format.mimetype application/pdf
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/1853/56276
dc.language.iso en_US
dc.publisher Georgia Institute of Technology
dc.subject Markov state model
dc.subject Optimal control
dc.subject Dynamic programming
dc.subject Colloidal self-assembly
dc.subject Colloidal self assembly
dc.subject Reduced order modeling
dc.title Markov state model-based optimal control for colloidal self-assembly
dc.type Text
dc.type.genre Dissertation
dspace.entity.type Publication
local.contributor.advisor Grover, Martha A.
local.contributor.corporatename School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
local.contributor.corporatename College of Engineering
relation.isAdvisorOfPublication d6e9a407-2031-4864-8232-15ac32d56de3
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication 6cfa2dc6-c5bf-4f6b-99a2-57105d8f7a6f
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication 7c022d60-21d5-497c-b552-95e489a06569
thesis.degree.level Doctoral
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