Designing Functional Nanomaterials via Chemical Interactions

<strong>Seminar of the School of Physical Sciences -------------------------------------------------</strong> Title: <strong>Designing Functional Nanomaterials via Chemical Interactions</strong> Speaker:<strong> Debabrata Patra</strong> University of Zurich, Zurich Date: <strong>February 10, 2016 (Wednesday)</strong> <strong>Abstract: </strong>Nanomaterials provide the basic building blocks for fabricating well defined structures with desired functions. Self-assembly is frequently used to organize these nanomaterials into hierarchical architectures by controlling interactions between themselves, in particular chemical interactions play a crucial role to dictate the self-organization process and eventually include functionality as well as tunability to the ensemble. My talk will encompass self-assembly of nanomaterials through covalent/noncovalent interactions for fabrication of microcapsules, micropumps and multilayer nanocoatings. Fabrication of colloidal microcapsules was achieved by self-assembly of nanoparticles at liquid-liquid interface via chemical reactions and their potential applications were demonstrated in many areas including encapsulation, size selective release, functional device and biocatalyst. Similarly noncovalent interactions were employed to design nonmechanical micropumps where chemical energy creates mechanical motion. Our studies showed that these pumps can be triggered by the presence of specific analytes, allowing the design of self-powered devices that act both as sensor and pump. Finally my latest research will highlight the development of flame retardant nanocoating via layer-by-layer assembly on polyurethane foam and preexpanded polystyrene beads.