Imaging how thermal capillary waves and anisotropic interfacial stiffness shape nanoparticle supracrystals.

ABSTRACT: Development of the surface morphology and shape of crystalline nanostructures governs the functionality of various materials, ranging from phonon transport to biocompatibility. However, the kinetic pathways, following which such development occurs, have been largely unexplored due to the lack of real-space imaging at single particle resolution. Here, we use colloidal nanoparticles assembling into supracrystals as a model system, and pinpoint the key role of surface fluctuation in shaping supracrystals. Utilizing liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy, we map the spatiotemporal surface profiles of supracrystals, which follow a capillary wave theory. Based on this theory, we measure otherwise elusive interfacial properties such as interfacial stiffness and mobility, the former of whic

SUBMITTER: Ou Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7486387 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature