A Transform Method of a Force Curve Obtained by Surface Force Apparatus to the Density Distribution of a Liquid on a Surface: An Improved Version

Abstract: We propose a transform method from a force curve obtained by a surface force apparatus (SFA) to a density distribution of a liquid on a surface of the SFA probe. (We emphasize that the transform method is a theory for the experiment.) In the method, two-body potential between the SFA probe and the solvent sphere is modeled as the soft attractive potential with rigid wall. The model potential is more realistic compared with the rigid potential applied in our earlier work. The introduction of the model potential is the improved point of the present transform method. The transform method is derived based on the statistical mechanics of a simple liquid where the simple liquid is an ensemble of small spheres. To derive the transform method, Kirkwood superposition approximation is used. It is found that the transformation can be done by a sequential computation. It is considered that the solvation structure can be obtained more precisely by using the improved transform method.