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Origami Inspired Self-assembly of Patterned and Reconfigurable Particles
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Kinetically Controlled Site-Specific Self-assembly of Hairy Colloids
Shayan Vazirieh Lenjani1, Cheng-Wu Li2, Sezer Seçkin1
1Institut für Physikalische Chemie und Physik der Polymere, Leibniz-Institut für Polymerforschung Dresden e.V., Dresden D-01069, Germany.
Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids
|January 5, 2024
Summary
The self-assembly of polymer-coated gold nanorods is slower than expected and depends on polymer shell thickness. This study quantifies assembly rates and enables controlled co-assembly of nanorod structures.
Area of Science:
- Colloid and Surface Science
- Nanotechnology
- Materials Science
Background:
- Solvophobicity drives self-assembly of polymer-coated gold nanorods.
- Kinetics, site-selectivity, and force interplay in this assembly are not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- Quantify assembly kinetics and conversion profiles.
- Investigate the influence of polymer shell thickness on assembly rates.
- Understand the origin of site-selectivity and force interactions.
Main Methods:
- Time-resolved (vis/NIR) extinction spectroscopy.
- Finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations.
- Coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations.
Main Results:
- Assembly is protracted compared to diffusion-controlled rates.
- Assembly rate is dependent on polymer shell thickness.
- Tip-to-tip assembly preference is confirmed.
- Co-assembly systems with distinct brush thicknesses show "narcissistic" self-sorting.
Conclusions:
- Quantified conversion rates enable design of complex supracolloidal assemblies.
- Understanding assembly kinetics opens new avenues for hierarchical self-assembly.
- Polymer shell thickness is a critical parameter for controlling nanorod assembly.
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