Multilayered crystals of macroions under slit confinement

The crystalline ground state of macroions confined between two neutral parallel plates in the presence of their homogeneously spread counterions is calculated by lattice sum minimization of candidate phases involving up to six layers. For increasing macroion density, a cascade of solid–solid transitions is found involving various multilayered crystals. The cascade includes triangular monolayer and buckled bilayer as well as rhombic, squared and triangular phase structures. (Some figures in this article are in colour only in the electronic version) 1