@article{70bff7086a7242c8a69efdb7e90094d2,
title = "Exploring the zone of anisotropy and broken symmetries in DNA-mediated nanoparticle crystallization",
abstract = "In this work, we present a joint experimental and molecular dynamics simulations effort to understand and map the crystallization behavior of polyhedral nanoparticles assembled via the interaction of DNA surface ligands. In these systems, we systematically investigated the interplay between the effects of particle core (via the particle symmetry and particle size) and ligands (via the ligand length) on crystallization behavior. This investigation revealed rich phase diagrams, previously unobserved phase transitions in polyhedral crystallization behavior, and an unexpected symmetry breaking in the ligand distribution on a particle surface. To understand these results, we introduce the concept of a zone of anisotropy, or the portion of the phase space where the anisotropy of the particle is preserved in the crystallization behavior. Through comparison of the zone of anisotropy for each particle we develop a foundational roadmap to guide future investigations.",
keywords = "Anisotropic nanoparticles, Broken symmetry, Colloidal crystallization, DNA, Nanomaterials",
author = "O'Brien, {Matthew N.} and Martin Girard and Lin, {Hai Xin} and Millan, {Jaime A.} and {De La Cruz}, {Monica Olvera} and Byeongdu Lee and Mirkin, {Chad A.}",
note = "Funding Information: This work was supported by Air Force Office of Scientific Research Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative FA9550-11-1-0275, National Science Foundation (NSF) Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) program Grant DMR-1121262 at the Materials Research Center of Northwestern University (NU), and the Non-equilibrium Energy Research Center, an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the Department of Energy (DoE), Office of Science, and Office of Basic Energy Sciences under Award DE-SC0000989 (all to C.A.M. and M.O.d.l.C.). M.N.O. was supported by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and M.G. by Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada graduate fellowship Grant PGS-D 6799-459278-2014. H.-X.L. was supported by a scholarship from China Scholarship Council under Grant 201306310060. J.A.M. was supported by the International Institute of Nanotechnology through a postdoctoral fellowship. SAXS experiments were carried out at the Dupont-Northwestern-Dow Collaborative Access Team beamline at the Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory, and use of the APS was supported by DoE Grant DE-AC02-06CH11357. This work made use of the EPIC facility (NUANCE Center at Northwestern University), which has received support from the MRSEC program (NSF Grant DMR-1121262) at the Materials Research Center, the International Institute for Nanotechnology (IIN), and the State of Illinois, through the IIN. Microtoming was performed at the NU Biological Imaging Facility generously supported by the NU Office for Research. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2016, National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.",
year = "2016",
month = sep,
day = "20",
doi = "10.1073/pnas.1611808113",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "113",
pages = "10485--10490",
journal = "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America",
issn = "0027-8424",
publisher = "National Academy of Sciences",
number = "38",
}