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Following in Real Time the Two-Step Assembly of Nanoparticles into Mesocrystals in Levitating Drops

Agthe, Michael ; Plivelic, Tomás S. LU ; Labrador, Ana LU orcid ; Bergström, Lennart and Salazar-Alvarez, German (2016) In Nano Letters 16(11). p.6838-6843
Abstract

Mesocrystals composed of crystallographically aligned nanocrystals are present in biominerals and assembled materials which show strongly directional properties of importance for mechanical protection and functional devices. Mesocrystals are commonly formed by complex biomineralization processes and can also be generated by assembly of anisotropic nanocrystals. Here, we follow the evaporation-induced assembly of maghemite nanocubes into mesocrystals in real time in levitating drops. Analysis of time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering data and ex situ scanning electron microscopy together with interparticle potential calculations show that the substrate-free, particle-mediated crystallization process proceeds in two stages involving... (More)

Mesocrystals composed of crystallographically aligned nanocrystals are present in biominerals and assembled materials which show strongly directional properties of importance for mechanical protection and functional devices. Mesocrystals are commonly formed by complex biomineralization processes and can also be generated by assembly of anisotropic nanocrystals. Here, we follow the evaporation-induced assembly of maghemite nanocubes into mesocrystals in real time in levitating drops. Analysis of time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering data and ex situ scanning electron microscopy together with interparticle potential calculations show that the substrate-free, particle-mediated crystallization process proceeds in two stages involving the formation and rapid transformation of a dense, structurally disordered phase into ordered mesocrystals. Controlling and tailoring the particle-mediated formation of mesocrystals could be utilized to assemble designed nanoparticles into new materials with unique functions.

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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
acoustic levitation, anisotropic nanoparticles, Mesocrystal, SAXS, two-step crystallization
in
Nano Letters
volume
16
issue
11
pages
6 pages
publisher
The American Chemical Society (ACS)
external identifiers
  • scopus:84994715752
  • pmid:27779885
  • wos:000387625000019
ISSN
1530-6984
DOI
10.1021/acs.nanolett.6b02586
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
dc62c455-cbda-4456-928e-b53b31033956
date added to LUP
2016-11-28 14:59:04
date last changed
2024-06-15 21:24:07
@article{dc62c455-cbda-4456-928e-b53b31033956,
  abstract     = {{<p>Mesocrystals composed of crystallographically aligned nanocrystals are present in biominerals and assembled materials which show strongly directional properties of importance for mechanical protection and functional devices. Mesocrystals are commonly formed by complex biomineralization processes and can also be generated by assembly of anisotropic nanocrystals. Here, we follow the evaporation-induced assembly of maghemite nanocubes into mesocrystals in real time in levitating drops. Analysis of time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering data and ex situ scanning electron microscopy together with interparticle potential calculations show that the substrate-free, particle-mediated crystallization process proceeds in two stages involving the formation and rapid transformation of a dense, structurally disordered phase into ordered mesocrystals. Controlling and tailoring the particle-mediated formation of mesocrystals could be utilized to assemble designed nanoparticles into new materials with unique functions.</p>}},
  author       = {{Agthe, Michael and Plivelic, Tomás S. and Labrador, Ana and Bergström, Lennart and Salazar-Alvarez, German}},
  issn         = {{1530-6984}},
  keywords     = {{acoustic levitation; anisotropic nanoparticles; Mesocrystal; SAXS; two-step crystallization}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{11}},
  number       = {{11}},
  pages        = {{6838--6843}},
  publisher    = {{The American Chemical Society (ACS)}},
  series       = {{Nano Letters}},
  title        = {{Following in Real Time the Two-Step Assembly of Nanoparticles into Mesocrystals in Levitating Drops}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.nanolett.6b02586}},
  doi          = {{10.1021/acs.nanolett.6b02586}},
  volume       = {{16}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}