Geometric curvature controls the chemical patchiness and self-assembly of nanoparticles

When organic molecules are tethered onto non-spherical nanoparticles, their chemical properties depend on the particles' local curvature and shape. Based on this observation, we show here that it is possible to engineer chemical patchiness across the surface of a non-spherical nanoparticle usin...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inNature nanotechnology Vol. 8; no. 9; pp. 676 - 681
Main Authors Walker, David A, Leitsch, Emily K, Nap, Rikkert J, Szleifer, Igal, Grzybowski, Bartosz A
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England Nature Publishing Group 01.09.2013
Subjects
Charged particles
Chemistry
Control equipment
Curvature
Engineering
Hypotheses
Ligands
Mathematical analysis
Nanoparticles
Nanostructure
Nanotechnology
Self assembly
United States > US
Illinois
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Summary:When organic molecules are tethered onto non-spherical nanoparticles, their chemical properties depend on the particles' local curvature and shape. Based on this observation, we show here that it is possible to engineer chemical patchiness across the surface of a non-spherical nanoparticle using a single chemical species. In particular, when acidic ligands are used, regions of the particle surface with different curvature become charged at different pH values of the surrounding solution. This interplay between particle shape and local electrostatics allows for fine control over nanoscale self-assembly leading to structures with varying degrees of complexity. These structures range from particle cross-stacks to open-lattice crystals, the latter with pore sizes on the order of tens of nanometres, that is, at the lower synthetic limits of metallic mesoporous materials.
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ISSN:1748-3387
1748-3395
DOI:10.1038/nnano.2013.158