Mesoscale self-assembly

Golfen, H. and Mann, S. (2004) Higher-order organization by mesoscale self-assembly and transformation of hybrid nanostructures. Angewandte Chemie-Intemational Edition, 42, 2350-2365. 

Despite these difficulties, mesoscale self-assembly of inorganic materials holds promise. In fact, it is believed that the importance of self-assembly in the manufacturing of electronics, photonics, optics, and robotics mesoscale components could conceivably supersede its importance in the molecular and nanoscale sciences. Some hybrid organic—inorganic systems have attracted attention because... 

Magic Nuclearity Giant Clusters of Metal Nanocrystals Formed by Mesoscale Self-Assembly... 

Mesoscale self-assembly the assembly of micron-and millimeter-sized objects using capillary forces... 

This chapter describes experimental and conceptual issues in mesoscale self-assembly (MESA), using examples from our work in the assembly of millimeter- and micron(micrometer)-sized polyhedral objects using capillary forces. In MESA, objects (from nm to mm in size) self-assemble into ordered arrays through noncovalent forces. Three systems that use capillary forces in MESA are described these involve the assembly of objects into two-dimensional arrays at the perfluorodecalin/H20 interface, into three-dimensional arrays at curved liquid/liquid interfaces, and into three-dimensional arrays from a suspension in water. The capillary interactions between objects can be viewed as a type of bond that is analogous to chemical bonds that act between atoms and molecules. 

We will describe two mesoscale, self-assembling systems in which the interactions between objects are based on capillary forces. The first is based on polyhedral polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) objects at a perfluorodecalin (PFD)/H20 interface. These objects have their faces patterned to be either hydrophobic or hydrophilic, and they assemble via lateral capillary forces that originate from interactions between these faces (Fig. 4. la). The second system uses polyhedral objects that are suspended in water and have selected faces covered with a water-insoluble liquid - either a hydrophobic organic liquid or a liquid metal solder these objects assemble via capillary forces into three-dimensional (3D) structures (Fig. 4.1b). 

Figure 4.18. Schematic sketching the experimental procedure used in 3D mesoscale self-assembly. Molding of a polyurethane prepolymer in a PDMS master generated polyhedra. Lubricant was added to the polyhedra in a water-filled Morton flask the use of liquid solder as a lubricant required the covering of selected faces with solder-coated copper tape. Axial rotation of the flask provided the agitation needed to cause collisions between liquid-coated pieces. The schematic depicts the formation and self-...

Mesoscale self-assembly of metal nanocrystals into ordered arrays and giant clusters... 

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