Open AccessNano-engineering by optically directed self-assembly.
Author(s) -
Eric M. Furst,
Elissa Dunn,
Jin Gyu Park,
C. Jeffrey Brinker,
Sunil Sainis,
Jason W. Merrill,
Eric R. Dufresne,
Matthew D. Reichert,
Christopher M. Brotherton,
K. H. A. Bogart,
Ryan A. Molecke,
Timothy Koehler,
Nelson S. Bell,
Anne Grillet,
Allen D. Gorby,
John P. Singh,
Pushkar P. Lele,
Manish Mittal
Publication year - 2009
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/974889
Subject(s) - optical tweezers , materials science , nanomaterials , nanotechnology , photonic crystal , nano , photonics , self assembly , laser , tweezers , nanoparticle , structural coloration , optoelectronics , optics , composite material , physics
Lack of robust manufacturing capabilities have limited our ability to make tailored materials with useful optical and thermal properties. For example, traditional methods such as spontaneous self-assembly of spheres cannot generate the complex structures required to produce a full bandgap photonic crystals. The goal of this work was to develop and demonstrate novel methods of directed self-assembly of nanomaterials using optical and electric fields. To achieve this aim, our work employed laser tweezers, a technology that enables non-invasive optical manipulation of particles, from glass microspheres to gold nanoparticles. Laser tweezers were used to create ordered materials with either complex crystal structures or using aspherical building blocks