Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA. International Institute of Nanotechnology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.
International Institute of Nanotechnology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA. Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.
Science. 2016 Feb 5;351(6273):579-82. doi: 10.1126/science.aad2212.
Unlike conventional inorganic materials, biological systems are exquisitely adapted to respond to their surroundings. Proteins and other biological molecules can process a complex set of chemical binding events as informational inputs and respond accordingly via a change in structure and function. We applied this principle to the design and synthesis of inorganic materials by preparing nanoparticles with reconfigurable surface ligands, where interparticle bonding can be programmed in response to specific chemical cues in a dynamic manner. As a result, a nascent set of "transmutable nanoparticles" can be driven to crystallize along multiple thermodynamic trajectories, resulting in rational control over the phase and time evolution of nanoparticle-based matter.
与传统的无机材料不同，生物系统经过精妙的设计以适应其周围环境。蛋白质和其他生物分子可以作为信息输入来处理复杂的化学结合事件，并通过结构和功能的变化做出相应的响应。我们通过制备具有可重构表面配体的纳米粒子，将这一原理应用于无机材料的设计和合成中，其中粒子间的结合可以通过动态方式响应特定的化学信号进行编程。结果，一组新的“可转换纳米粒子”可以沿着多条热力学轨迹结晶，从而实现对基于纳米粒子的物质的相和时间演化的合理控制。
