Structure and dynamics of surfactant-stabilized aggregates of palladium nanoparticles under dilute and semidilute conditions: Static and dynamic x-ray scattering

We have used high-resolution small-angle x-ray scattering and the recently introduced technique of x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy to study the structure and diffusive dynamics of a colloidal palladium aggregate sol under dilute and semidilute conditions. At low concentration we find that the size of the aggregates as determined from the static structure factor and from the diffusive dynamics agree. At high concentration the aggregates start to overlap and the apparent diffusion constant decreases, while the system remains in a liquidlike state. The comparison of static and dynamic data gives insight into structural features that are indiscernable by one technique alone.