Focusing frustration for self-limiting assembly of flexible, curved particles

Tanjeem, Nabila; Hall, Douglas M.; Minnis, Montana B.; Hayward, Ryan C.; Grason, Gregory M.

doi:10.1103/physrevresearch.4.033035

Cited by 9 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Although natural convection and thermophoresis are known for driving colloidal crystallization, the novelty of our work involves the use of a binary mixture and spatial illumination control that allows for the two different kinds of tunability. Self-assembly with programmable sizes is highly relevant in the field of self-limiting assembly, where a self-assembled structure defines its finite size in equilibrium via mechanisms of geometric frustration , or self-closure . Because the assembly of smaller particles ( D < 5 μm) is reversible, the size and the shape of the particle crowd or crystal can potentially be reconfigured on demand by using different light patterns.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Programmable Crowding and Tunable Phases in a Binary Mixture of Colloidal Particles under Light-Driven Thermal Convection

Lopez-Ceja,

Flores,

Juliano

et al. 2024

J. Phys. Chem. B

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We employ photothermally driven self-assembly of colloidal particles to design microscopic structures with programmable size and tunable order. The experimental system is based on a binary mixture of "plasmonic heater" gold nanoparticles and "assembly building block" microparticles. Photothermal heating of the gold nanoparticles under visible light causes a natural convection flow that efficiently assembles the microscale building block particles (diameter 1−10 μm) into a monolayer. We identify the onset of active Brownian motion of colloidal particles under this convective flow by varying the conditions of light intensity, gold nanoparticle concentration, and sample height. We realize a crowded assembly of microparticles around the center of illumination and show that the size of the particle crowd can be programmed using patterned light illumination. In a binary mixture of gold nanoparticles and polystyrene microparticles, we demonstrate the formation of rapid and large-scale crystalline monolayers, covering an area of 0.88 mm 2 within 10 min. We find that the structural order of the assembly can be tuned by varying the surface charge of the nanoparticles and the size of the microparticles, giving rise to the formation of different phases−colloidal crystals, crowds, and gels. Using Monte Carlo simulations, we explain how the phases emerge from the interplay between hydrodynamic and electrostatic interactions, as well as the assembly kinetics. Our study demonstrates the promise of self-assembly with programmable shapes and structural order under nonequilibrium conditions using an accessible setup comprising only binary mixtures and LED light.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Programmable Crowding and Tunable Phases in a Binary Mixture of Colloidal Particles under Light-Driven Thermal Convection

Lopez-Ceja,

Flores,

Juliano

et al. 2024

J. Phys. Chem. B

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“…The potential advantages posed by selfassembling systems that can ''sense'' their size at ranges that exceed the subunits themselves raises the possibility of intentionally engineering frustration into synthetically fabricated assemblies as a means to ''program'' their assembly behavior. [27][28][29] In principle, recent progress in the synthesis of colloidal-scale particles with programmed shape can allow for tunable shape frustration that can more fully test the continuum theory description of size control. 30,31 Notably, advances in DNA nanotechnology 32,33 as well as synthetic protein engineering [34][35][36][37] allow for both careful design and control of the shape frustration of self-assembling nanoscale units as well as new opportunities for programming the interactions to separately tune the strength of cohesion and costs associated with distinct modes of assembly deformation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Building blocks of non-Euclidean ribbons: size-controlled self-assembly via discrete frustrated particles

2023

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“…However, if the capsomers become too soft, capsid assembly is inhibited owing to the large structural fluctuations, and fluid-like structures are observed. The use of elasticity as a control knob to alter assembly behavior demonstrated in our work has broad implications in the design of reconfigurable systems based on soft materials, where there is a keen interest in understanding how self-assembly is affected by building blocks that can spontaneously reconfigure during assembly [ 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Deformable Viral Capsomers

Nilsson,

Sun,

Kadupitiya

et al. 2023

Viruses

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Most coarse-grained models of individual capsomers associated with viruses employ rigid building blocks that do not exhibit shape adaptation during self-assembly. We develop a coarse-grained general model of viral capsomers that incorporates their stretching and bending energies while retaining many features of the rigid-body models, including an overall trapezoidal shape with attractive interaction sites embedded in the lateral walls to favor icosahedral capsid assembly. Molecular dynamics simulations of deformable capsomers reproduce the rich self-assembly behavior associated with a general T=1 icosahedral virus system in the absence of a genome. Transitions from non-assembled configurations to icosahedral capsids to kinetically-trapped malformed structures are observed as the steric attraction between capsomers is increased. An assembly diagram in the space of capsomer–capsomer steric attraction and capsomer deformability reveals that assembling capsomers of higher deformability into capsids requires increasingly large steric attraction between capsomers. Increasing capsomer deformability can reverse incorrect capsomer–capsomer binding, facilitating transitions from malformed structures to symmetric capsids; however, making capsomers too soft inhibits assembly and yields fluid-like structures.

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Focusing frustration for self-limiting assembly of flexible, curved particles

Cited by 9 publications

References 45 publications

Programmable Crowding and Tunable Phases in a Binary Mixture of Colloidal Particles under Light-Driven Thermal Convection

Programmable Crowding and Tunable Phases in a Binary Mixture of Colloidal Particles under Light-Driven Thermal Convection

Building blocks of non-Euclidean ribbons: size-controlled self-assembly via discrete frustrated particles

Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Deformable Viral Capsomers

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