1. Linker-mediated phase behavior of DNA-coated colloids
- Author
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Lowensohn, Janna, Oyarzún, Bernardo, Paliza, Guillermo Narvaez, Mognetti, Bortolo M., and Rogers, W. Benjamin
- Subjects
Condensed Matter - Soft Condensed Matter ,Condensed Matter - Statistical Mechanics ,Physics - Chemical Physics - Abstract
The possibility of prescribing local interactions between nano- and microscopic components that direct them to assemble in a predictable fashion is a central goal of nanotechnology research. In this article we advance a new paradigm in which self-assembly of DNA-functionalized colloidal particles is programmed using linker oligonucleotides dispersed in solution. We find a phase diagram that is surprisingly rich compared to phase diagrams typical of other DNA-functionalized colloidal particles that interact by direct hybridization, including a re-entrant melting transition upon increasing linker concentration, and show that multiple linker species can be combined together to prescribe many interactions simultaneously. A new theory predicts the observed phase behavior quantitatively without any fitting parameters. Taken together, these experiments and model lay the groundwork for future research in programmable self-assembly, enabling the possibility of programming the hundreds of specific interactions needed to assemble fully-addressable, mesoscopic structures, while also expanding our fundamental understanding of the unique phase behavior possible in colloidal suspensions., Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, supporting information
- Published
- 2019
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