Self-organized helical superstructure

Y. Li, A. Uibas, Q. Li, Reversible light-directed red, green and blue reflections with thermal stability enabled by a self-organized helical superstructure. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 134, 9573-9576 (2012)... 

Q. Li, Y. Li, J. Ma, D.-K. Yang, T.J. White, T.J. Running, Directing dynamic control of red, green, and blue reflection enabled by a light-driven self-organized helical superstructure. Adv. Mater. 23, 5069-5073 (2011)... 

Wang, Y. Urbas, A. Li, Q. Reversible visible-light tuning of self-organized helical superstructures enabled by unprecedented light-driven axially chiral molecular switches. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2012,134, 3342-3345. 

Self-assembly is a powerful tool to create novel materials with emergent or amplified properties [1-8]. Detailed below are a number of experiments that exemplify an approach where small, information-rich molecules are designed, synthesized, and studied as functional materials. In particular, the emphasis of this chapter will be on assemblies that form columnar, tubular, or helical superstructures, shown schematically in Figure 1. Although nature is a wonderful creator of these types or self-organized structures, it is beyond the scope of this chapter. 

Self-organization of amphiphilic (co)polymers has resulted in assemblies such as micelles, vesicles, fibers, helical superstructures, and macroscopic tubes [174, 175]. These nanoscale to macroscale morphologies are of interest in areas ranging from material science to biology [176]. Stimuli-responsive versions of these assemblies are likely to further enhance their scope as smart materials. Thermo- or pH-sensitive polymer micelles [177] and vesicles [178] have been reported in which the nature of the functionality at the corona changes in response to the stimulus. Some attention has been also paid to realize an environment-dependent switch from a micelle-type assembly with a hydrophilic corona to an inverted micelle-type assembly with a lipophilic corona [179]. 

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