Wet-chemical synthesis of chiral colloids

Samia Ouhajji*, Bas G.P. Van Ravensteijn, Carla Fernández-Rico, Kanvaly S. Lacina, Albert P. Philipse, Andrei V. Petukhov

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

We disclose a method for the synthesis of chiral colloids from spontaneously formed hollow sugar-surfactant microtubes with internally confined mobile colloidal spheres. Key feature of our approach is the grafting of colloid surfaces with photoresponsive coumarin moieties, which allow for UV-induced, covalent clicking of colloids into permanent chains, with morphologies set by the colloid-to-tube diameter ratio. Subsequent dissolution of tube confinement yields aqueous suspensions that comprise bulk quantities of a variety of linear chains, including single helical chains of polystyrene colloids. These colloidal equivalents of chiral (DNA) molecules are intended for microscopic study of chiral dynamics on a single-particle level.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)12089-12095
JournalACS Nano
Volume12
Issue number12
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Nov 2018

Keywords

  • chirality
  • colloidal synthesis
  • confined assembly
  • helices
  • UV irradiation

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