Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 28, 2026

Gyroid Nickel Nanostructures from Diblock Copolymer Supramolecules
Published on: April 28, 2014
Manipulation and Deposition of Complex, Functional Block Copolymer Nanostructures Using Optical Tweezers
Oliver E C Gould1, Stuart J Box2, Charlotte E Boott1
1School of Chemistry , University of Bristol , Bristol BS8 1TS , United Kingdom.
Abstract:
Block copolymer self-assembly has enabled the creation of a range of solution-phase nanostructures with applications from optoelectronics and biomedicine to catalysis. However, to incorporate such materials into devices a method that facilitates their precise manipulation and deposition is desirable. Herein we describe how optical tweezers can be used to trap, manipulate, and pattern individual cylindrical micelles and larger hybrid micellar materials. Through the combination of TIRF imaging and optical trapping we can precisely control the three-dimensional motion of individual cylindrical block copolymer micelles in solution, enabling the creation of customizable arrays. We also demonstrate that dynamic holographic assembly enables the creation of ordered customizable arrays of complex hybrid block copolymer structures. By creating a program which automatically identifies, traps, and then deposits multiple assemblies simultaneously we have been able to dramatically speed up this normally slow process, enabling the fabrication of arrays of hybrid structures containing hundreds of assemblies in minutes rather than hours.
Related Concept Videos
Characteristics and Nomenclature of Copolymers
Phase Transitions: Sublimation and Deposition
Protein Complexes with Interchangeable Parts
The SCF ubiquitin ligase is a protein complex of five individual proteins. This complex attaches ubiquitin to other target proteins to mark them for degradation. In order...
Protein Complex Assembly
Many viruses self-assemble into a fully functional unit using the infected host cell to...
Block Diagram Reduction
The first step in this process is the identification and relocation of a branch point. A branch point, where a...
Manipulation and Analysis

