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Helicoidal Patterning of Nanorods with Polymer Ligands
Author(s) -
Galati Elizabeth,
Tao Huachen,
Tebbe Moritz,
Ansari Rija,
Rubinstein Michael,
Zhulina Ekaterina B.,
Kumacheva Eugenia
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201812887
Subject(s) - nanorod , polymer , materials science , nanoparticle , nanotechnology , morphology (biology) , layer (electronics) , self assembly , micelle , chemical engineering , chemistry , composite material , aqueous solution , organic chemistry , genetics , engineering , biology
Chiral packing of ligands on the surface of nanoparticles (NPs) is of fundamental and practical importance, as it determines how NPs interact with each other and with the molecular world. Herein, for gold nanorods (NRs) capped with end‐grafted nonchiral polymer ligands, we show a new mechanism of chiral surface patterning. Under poor solvency conditions, a smooth polymer layer segregates into helicoidally organized surface‐pinned micelles (patches). The helicoidal morphology is dictated by the polymer grafting density and the ratio of the polymer ligand length to nanorod radius. Outside this specific parameter space, a range of polymer surface structures was observed, including random, shish‐kebab, and hybrid patches, as well as a smooth polymer layer. We characterize polymer surface morphology by theoretical and experimental state diagrams. The helicoidally organized polymer patches on the NR surface can be used as a template for the helicoidal organization of other NPs, masked synthesis on the NR surface, as well as the exploration of new NP self‐assembly modes.