Article abstract
Nature Materials
Published online: 18 October 2009 | doi:10.1038/nmat2565
Small-molecule-directed nanoparticle assembly towards stimuli-responsive nanocomposites
Yue Zhao1,6, Kari Thorkelsson1,6, Alexander J. Mastroianni1,2,3,6, Thomas Schilling1, Joseph M. Luther2,3, Benjamin J. Rancatore1,2,3, Kazuyuki Matsunaga4, Hiroshi Jinnai4,5, Yue Wu2, Daniel Poulsen2, Jean M. J. Fréchet2,3, A. Paul Alivisatos2,3 & Ting Xu1,2,3
Abstract
Precise control of the spatial organization of nanoscopic building blocks, such as nanoparticles, over multiple length scales is a bottleneck in the 'bottom-up' generation of technologically important materials. Only a few approaches have been shown to achieve nanoparticle assemblies without surface modification. We demonstrate a simple yet versatile approach to produce stimuli-responsive hierarchical assemblies of readily available nanoparticles by combining small molecules and block copolymers. Organization of nanoparticles into one-, two- and three-dimensional arrays with controlled inter-particle separation and ordering is achieved without chemical modification of either the nanoparticles or block copolymers. Nanocomposites responsive to heat and light are demonstrated, where the spatial distribution of the nanoparticles can be varied by exposure to heat or light or changing the local environment. The approach described is applicable to a wide range of nanoparticles and compatible with existing fabrication processes, thereby enabling a non-disruptive approach for the generation of functional devices.
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720-1760, USA
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720-1760, USA
- Material Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
- Kyoto Institute of Technology, Kyoto 606-8585, Japan
- WPI Advanced Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8577, Japan
- These authors contributed equally to this work
Correspondence to: Ting Xu1,2,3 e-mail: tingxu@berkeley.edu
