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Related Concept Videos

Metallic Solids02:37

Metallic Solids

Metallic solids such as crystals of copper, aluminum, and iron are formed by metal atoms. The structure of metallic crystals is often described as a uniform distribution of atomic nuclei within a “sea” of delocalized electrons. The atoms within such a metallic solid are held together by a unique force known as metallic bonding that gives rise to many useful and varied bulk properties.
All metallic solids exhibit high thermal and electrical conductivity, metallic luster, and malleability. Many...
Lattice Centering and Coordination Number02:33

Lattice Centering and Coordination Number

The structure of a crystalline solid, whether a metal or not, is best described by considering its simplest repeating unit, which is referred to as its unit cell. The unit cell consists of lattice points that represent the locations of atoms or ions. The entire structure then consists of this unit cell repeating in three dimensions. The three different types of unit cells present in the cubic lattice are illustrated in Figure 1.
Types of Unit Cells
Imagine taking a large number of identical...
Structures of Solids02:22

Structures of Solids

Solids in which the atoms, ions, or molecules are arranged in a definite repeating pattern are known as crystalline solids. Metals and ionic compounds typically form ordered, crystalline solids. A crystalline solid has a precise melting temperature because each atom or molecule of the same type is held in place with the same forces or energy. Amorphous solids or non-crystalline solids (or, sometimes, glasses) which lack an ordered internal structure and are randomly arranged. Substances that...
Ionic Crystal Structures02:42

Ionic Crystal Structures

Ionic crystals consist of two or more different kinds of ions that usually have different sizes. The packing of these ions into a crystal structure is more complex than the packing of metal atoms that are the same size.
Most monatomic ions behave as charged spheres, and their attraction for ions of opposite charge is the same in every direction. Consequently, stable structures for ionic compounds result (1) when ions of one charge are surrounded by as many ions as possible of the opposite...
The Seven Crystal Systems: Overview01:24

The Seven Crystal Systems: Overview

Crystals with various point group symmetries belong to different crystal classes, which are synonymous terms. Despite being in the same class, crystals may have distinct shapes, like cubes and octahedra. There are 32 three-dimensional point groups, all of which are systematically divided into seven crystal systems.The basic cubic crystal system, exemplified by NaCl, features orthogonal vectors (α = β = �� = 90°) of equal lengths (a = b = c). When specific requirements are not imposed on the...
Unit Cells01:18

Unit Cells

A crystal's internal structure is an orderly array of atoms, ions, or molecules, and the details of this array significantly influence the solid's properties. In a crystal, periodically repeating 'structural motifs' - which could be atoms, molecules, or groups thereof - create a 'space lattice.' This is essentially a three-dimensional, infinite array of points, each surrounded by its neighbors in an identical way, forming the basic structure of the crystal.A 'unit cell' is a theoretical...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Liquid-cell Transmission Electron Microscopy for Tracking Self-assembly of Nanoparticles
08:39

Liquid-cell Transmission Electron Microscopy for Tracking Self-assembly of Nanoparticles

Published on: October 16, 2017

Quasicrystalline order in self-assembled binary nanoparticle superlattices.

Dmitri V Talapin1, Elena V Shevchenko, Maryna I Bodnarchuk

  • 1Department of Chemistry, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA. dvtalapin@uchicago.edu

Nature
|October 16, 2009
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Colloidal inorganic nanoparticles self-assemble into binary aperiodic superlattices, forming dodecagonal quasicrystalline order. This discovery reveals quasicrystal formation as a general sphere-packing phenomenon, not requiring unique interactions.

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A Technique to Functionalize and Self-assemble Macroscopic Nanoparticle-ligand Monolayer Films onto Template-free Substrates
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Methods of Ex Situ and In Situ Investigations of Structural Transformations: The Case of Crystallization of Metallic Glasses
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Methods of Ex Situ and In Situ Investigations of Structural Transformations: The Case of Crystallization of Metallic Glasses

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Liquid-cell Transmission Electron Microscopy for Tracking Self-assembly of Nanoparticles
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A Technique to Functionalize and Self-assemble Macroscopic Nanoparticle-ligand Monolayer Films onto Template-free Substrates
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A Technique to Functionalize and Self-assemble Macroscopic Nanoparticle-ligand Monolayer Films onto Template-free Substrates

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Methods of Ex Situ and In Situ Investigations of Structural Transformations: The Case of Crystallization of Metallic Glasses
08:55

Methods of Ex Situ and In Situ Investigations of Structural Transformations: The Case of Crystallization of Metallic Glasses

Published on: June 7, 2018

Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Crystallography
  • Nanotechnology

Background:

  • Quasicrystals, discovered in 1984, challenged the traditional view of ordered solids as periodic structures.
  • They exhibit long-range order without translational symmetry, allowing symmetries forbidden in classical crystallography, such as 12-fold rotations.
  • Quasicrystalline order has been observed in intermetallic compounds, soft matter, and laser-arranged colloidal spheres.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To demonstrate the self-assembly of colloidal inorganic nanoparticles into binary aperiodic superlattices.
  • To investigate the formation of quasicrystalline order in various binary nanoparticle systems.
  • To explore the underlying principles governing nanoparticle quasicrystal formation and their interfaces with crystalline structures.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized binary nanoparticle systems including iron oxides (Fe(2)O(3), Fe(3)O(4)) and noble metals (Au, Pd), alongside lead sulfide (PbS) nanocrystals.
  • Observed the self-assembly of these nanoparticles into ordered superlattices.
  • Analyzed the resulting structures for quasicrystalline order, specifically dodecagonal symmetry.

Main Results:

  • Successfully demonstrated the formation of dodecagonal quasicrystalline order in multiple binary nanoparticle systems.
  • Showcased compositional flexibility, indicating quasicrystal formation is a general sphere-packing phenomenon governed by entropy and interparticle potentials.
  • Observed that these quasicrystalline superlattices can form low-defect interfaces with ordinary crystalline binary superlattices.

Conclusions:

  • Colloidal inorganic nanoparticles can self-assemble into binary quasicrystalline superlattices.
  • The formation of nanoparticle quasicrystals is a general sphere-packing phenomenon, driven by entropy and simple interparticle potentials.
  • Quasicrystalline nanoparticle assemblies can integrate with crystalline structures, suggesting potential for novel material design.