Magnetic nanowires generated via the waterborne desalting transition pathway

We report a simple and versatile waterborne synthesis of magnetic nanowires following the innovative concept of electrostatic "desalting transition". Highly persistent superparamagnetic nanowires are generated from the controlled assembly of oppositely charged nanoparticles and commercially available polyelectrolytes. The wires have diameters around 200 nm and lengths between 1 μm and 0.5 mm, with either positive or negative charges on their surface. Beyond, we show that this soft-chemistry assembly approach is a general phenomenon independent of the feature of the macromolecular building blocks, opening significant perspectives for the design of multifunctional materials.