Light-induced effects on Brownian displacements.

Earlier work on particles in aqueous solution indicated that particle hydration could be expanded by incident light. To assess the effects of expanded hydration we measured Brownian displacements of microspheres exposed to light of varying intensities and wavelengths. Displacements were consistently diminished in an intensity-dependent and wavelength-dependent fashion, and center-to-center distances between microspheres were shifted to higher values. We conclude that suspended microspheres are surrounded by hydration zones substantial enough to impact Brownian displacements.