Home > News > Molecular self-assembly scales up from nanometers to millimeters
June 5th, 2014
Molecular self-assembly scales up from nanometers to millimeters
Abstract:
To ensure the survival of Moore's law and the success of the nanoelectronics industry, alternative patterning techniques that offer advantages beyond conventional top-down patterning are aggressively being explored.
Story:
Can self-assembly based technologies offer advantages beyond conventional top-down lithography approaches?
A joint effort of the Aalto University of Helsinki, the Politecnico di Milano, and VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has now demonstrated that it is possible to align molecular self-assemblies from nanometers to millimeters without the intervention of external stimuli.
Molecular self-assembly is a concept derived from Nature that leads to the spontaneous organization of molecules into more complex and functional supramolecular structures. The recipe is "encoded" in the chemical structure of the self-assembling molecules. Molecular self-assembly has been exploited for "templating" functional devices, molecular wires, memory elements, etc. However, it has typically required additional processing steps to achieve extended alignment of the structures.
The new finding showed that by engineering recognition elements between polymers and fluorinated small molecules, it has been possible to drive their spontaneous self-assembly from nanometers to millimeters, thanks to the judicious use of noncovalent interactions. After the processing, fluoromolecules can optionally be removed upon thermal treatment.
This concept opens up new avenues in large area nanoconstruction, for example in templating nanowires, which is currently under investigation.
Bookmark:
| Related Links |
| Related News Press |
News and information
Quantum computer improves AI predictions April 17th, 2026
Flexible sensor gains sensitivity under pressure April 17th, 2026
A reusable chip for particulate matter sensing April 17th, 2026
Detecting vibrational quantum beating in the predissociation dynamics of SF6 using time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy April 17th, 2026
Chip Technology
A reusable chip for particulate matter sensing April 17th, 2026
Metasurfaces smooth light to boost magnetic sensing precision January 30th, 2026
Self Assembly
Diamond glitter: A play of colors with artificial DNA crystals May 17th, 2024
Liquid crystal templated chiral nanomaterials October 14th, 2022
Nanoclusters self-organize into centimeter-scale hierarchical assemblies April 22nd, 2022
Atom by atom: building precise smaller nanoparticles with templates March 4th, 2022
Nanoelectronics
Lab to industry: InSe wafer-scale breakthrough for future electronics August 8th, 2025
Interdisciplinary: Rice team tackles the future of semiconductors Multiferroics could be the key to ultralow-energy computing October 6th, 2023
Key element for a scalable quantum computer: Physicists from Forschungszentrum Jülich and RWTH Aachen University demonstrate electron transport on a quantum chip September 23rd, 2022
Reduced power consumption in semiconductor devices September 23rd, 2022
Discoveries
Quantum computer improves AI predictions April 17th, 2026
Flexible sensor gains sensitivity under pressure April 17th, 2026
A reusable chip for particulate matter sensing April 17th, 2026
Detecting vibrational quantum beating in the predissociation dynamics of SF6 using time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy April 17th, 2026
Announcements
A fundamentally new therapeutic approach to cystic fibrosis: Nanobody repairs cellular defect April 17th, 2026
UC Irvine physicists discover method to reverse ‘quantum scrambling’ : The work addresses the problem of information loss in quantum computing system April 17th, 2026
Interviews/Book Reviews/Essays/Reports/Podcasts/Journals/White papers/Posters
A fundamentally new therapeutic approach to cystic fibrosis: Nanobody repairs cellular defect April 17th, 2026
UC Irvine physicists discover method to reverse ‘quantum scrambling’ : The work addresses the problem of information loss in quantum computing system April 17th, 2026
 |
||
 |
||
| The latest news from around the world, FREE | ||
 |
||
|
|
||
| Premium Products | ||
 |
||
|
Only the news you want to read!
Learn More |
||
 |
||
|
Full-service, expert consulting
Learn More |
||
|
|
||