Issue 45, 2019

Evaporation-driven manipulation of nanoscale brickwork structures for the design of 1D, 2D, and 3D microarrays of rectangular building blocks

Abstract

As children play with wooden building blocks, we would like to construct elaborate architectures through the one-by-one accumulation of nanocrystals. Recently, ordered microarrays of nanosized building blocks have attracted attention as a sophisticated bottom-up approach to fabricate adequate nanomaterials. However, their dimensions, scale, and orientations have not been strictly controlled. The present highlight article reports the potential of brickwork structures using evaporation-driven manipulation as a nanoscale architectural method. Here, the essence of controlled assembly is shown with a demonstration of 1D, 2D, and 3D brickwork structures designed with various inorganic rectangular building nanoblocks covered by stabilizing organic agents. The structures of the ordered assemblies are found to be controlled by changing several parameters, such as particle concentration and the properties of dispersion media and stabilizing agents. This brickwork technique is applicable to multicomponent systems using a library of rectangular nanoblocks. Homogeneous and heterogeneous ordered architectures with spatial and sequential control are selectively produced through the self-assembly of nanocubes and nanocuboids. These elaborate nanoscale brickwork structures are now being developed for the production of designed microstructures with novel functions.

Graphical abstract: Evaporation-driven manipulation of nanoscale brickwork structures for the design of 1D, 2D, and 3D microarrays of rectangular building blocks

Associated articles

Article information

Article type
Highlight
Submitted
20 jún 2019
Accepted
05 sep 2019
First published
30 sep 2019

CrystEngComm, 2019,21, 6905-6914

Evaporation-driven manipulation of nanoscale brickwork structures for the design of 1D, 2D, and 3D microarrays of rectangular building blocks

H. Imai, R. Matsumoto, M. Takasaki, K. Tsukiyama, K. Sawano and Y. Nakagawa, CrystEngComm, 2019, 21, 6905 DOI: 10.1039/C9CE00960D

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements