Hybridization of inorganic nanoparticles and polymers to create regular and reversible self-assembly architectures

Abstract

Inorganic nanoparticles (NPs) with diversified functionalities are promising candidates in future optoelectronic and biomedical applications, which greatly depend on the capability to arrange NPs into higher-order architectures in a controllable way. This issue is considered to be solved by means of self-assembly. NPs can participate in self-assembly in different manners, such as smart self-organization with blended molecules, as the carriers of host molecules for assembly and disassembly with guest molecules, as netpoints to endow the architectures specific functionalities, and so forth. To enhance the structural stability of the as-prepared assembly architectures, polymers have been utilized to create NP-polymer composites. Meanwhile, such a strategy also demonstrates the possibility of integrating the functionalities of NPs and/or polymers by forming regular architectures. The emerging interest in the current optoelectronic and biological areas strongly demands intelligent nanocomposites, which are produced by combination of the excellent functionalities of NPs and the responsiveness of polymers. On the basis of the recent progress in fabricating NP-polymer composites, this critical review summarizes the development of new methods for fabricating regular self-assembly architectures, highlights the reversible assembly and disassembly behavior, and indicates the potential applications.

Fabrication of composite thin films with microstructures of honeycomb, foam, and nanosphere arrays through adsorption and self-assembly of block copolymers at the liquid/liquid interface

“…Recently, the self-assembly of polymers, especially block copolymers, has aroused an increasing research interest [15,16] due to their abundant self-assembly behaviors. The micellization and microphase separation of block copolymers in solutions and thin films have been utilized extensively to fabricate the organized composite structures of polymer/nanoparticles [17][18][19][20].…”

Region‐Selective Deposition of Core–Shell Nanoparticles for 3 D Hierarchical Assemblies by the Huisgen 1,3‐Dipolar Cycloaddition

“…[14][15][16] These so-called core-shell NPs offer huge potential regarding the ability to vary composition and electronic properties. [17] To our knowledge,h owever,t he use of the CuAACwith core-shell systems and flat substrates has never been carried out region-selectively,o r" locationselectively", [18] and with defined multilayer formation. The approach we present herein combines the universal applicability of the CuAACwith the versatility of inorganic-organic core-shell NPs to provide an efficient and region-selective deposition technique.W ed emonstrate ac oncept for precise region-selective film formation with control in film thickness and full control of the order of the materials in the formed 3D stacks,b ased on digital chemical selection of functionalized NPs.…”

Colloidal Magnetic Heterostructured Nanocrystals with Asymmetric Topologies: Seeded-Growth Synthetic Routes and Formation Mechanisms

“…HNCs incorporate a countable number of discrete nanometer-scale modules (with the largest dimension smaller than~100-150 nm) made of chemically and/or structurally different materials, which are welded together via direct solid-state chemically bonded heterointerfaces to form individually distinguishable, solution freestanding multifunctional hybrid nanoplatforms. In general, HNCs may group inorganic Buonsanti et al, 2007;Jun et al, 2007;Casavola et al, 2008;Carbone and Cozzoli, 2010;Talapin et al, 2010;de Mello Donegà, 2011;Liu et al, 2011;Buck and Schaak, 2013;Sitt et al, 2013;Banin et al, 2014;Melinon et al, 2014;Purbia and Paria, 2015;Qi et al, 2015) and/or organic materials, such as polymers (Lattuada and Hatton, 2011;Liu et al, 2011;Zhang et al, 2012;He et al, 2013;Kaewsaneha et al, 2013;Pang et al, 2014;Purbia and Paria, 2015) or some carbon allotropes Liu et al, 2011;Purbia and Paria, 2015;Yan et al, 2015b). As far as the attached domains grow crystalline, the relevant heterojunctions can develop epitaxially, allowing the concerned lattices to hold precise, yet synthetically adjustable, crystallographic, and spatial relationships relative to one other (Carbone and Cozzoli, 2010;Shim and McDaniel, 2010).…”

“…The most easily controllable prototypes of HNCs delivered so far can be roughly classified into two main categories: (i) core@shell architectures, in which the component domains are arranged in concentric or eccentric onionlike topologies, where only the outer shell material, which protects the inner core, is exposed to the external environment Buonsanti et al, 2007;Jun et al, 2007;Casavola et al, 2008;Carbone and Cozzoli, 2010;de Mello Donegà, 2011;Liu et al, 2011;Zhang et al, 2012;Kaewsaneha et al, 2013;Sitt et al, 2013;Banin et al, 2014;Melinon et al, 2014;Purbia and Paria, 2015;Qi et al, 2015) [in the yolk/shell variant, a core-or shellconformal void space may also intervene in the interior (Casavola et al, 2008;Carbone and Cozzoli, 2010;Liu et al, 2011;Purbia and Paria, 2015)]; (ii) non-core@shell segregated heteroclusters, in which the constituent sections are asymmetrically arranged in space through small heterojunctions, such that a substantial fraction of the surface of each material module remains accessible Buonsanti et al, 2007;Jun et al, 2007;Casavola et al, 2008;Peng et al, 2009;Carbone and Cozzoli, 2010;de Mello Donegà, 2011;Lattuada and Hatton, 2011;Buck and Schaak, 2013;Kaewsaneha et al, 2013;Sitt et al, 2013;Banin et al, 2014;Melinon et al, 2014;Pang et al, 2014;Yan et al, 2015b). The latter cluster-type heterostructures, which encompass two-component Janus-type HNCs Casavola et al, 2008;C...…”