Issue 7, 2015

Self-assembly of “patchy” nanoparticles: a versatile approach to functional hierarchical materials

Abstract

The solution-phase self-assembly or “polymerization” of discrete colloidal building blocks, such as “patchy” nanoparticles and multicompartment micelles, is attracting growing attention with respect to the creation of complex hierarchical materials. This approach represents a versatile method with which to transfer functionality at the molecular level to the nano- and microscale, and is often accompanied by the emergence of new material properties. In this perspective we highlight selected recent examples of the self-assembly of anisotropic nanoparticles which exploit directional interactions introduced through their shape or surface chemistry to afford a variety of hierarchical materials. We focus in particular on the solution self-assembly of block copolymers as a means to prepare multicompartment or “patchy” micelles. Due to their potential for synthetic modification, these constructs represent highly tuneable building blocks for the fabrication of a wide variety of functional assemblies.

Graphical abstract: Self-assembly of “patchy” nanoparticles: a versatile approach to functional hierarchical materials

Article information

Article type
Perspective
Submitted
30 Mar 2015
Accepted
13 Apr 2015
First published
12 May 2015
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY license

Chem. Sci., 2015,6, 3663-3673

Author version available

Self-assembly of “patchy” nanoparticles: a versatile approach to functional hierarchical materials

D. J. Lunn, J. R. Finnegan and I. Manners, Chem. Sci., 2015, 6, 3663 DOI: 10.1039/C5SC01141H

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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