STRUCTURE AND DYNAMICS OF A DENSE DIPOLAR SYSTEM IN AN ELECTRIC-FIELD AND THEIR RELEVANCE TO ELECTRORHEOLOGICAL FLUIDS

Results of computer simulations of a dense system of dipolar spheres in an electric field are summarized. Dissipative and Hamiltonian dynamics algorithms have been used to find energy minima of the system for varying particle densities. The stuctures obtained by these simulations are in reasonable agreement with experimentally observed structures in electrorheological (ER) fluids. Qualitative agreement is also obtained with the limited available experimental observations on the dynamics of ER fluids.