Nanowerk September 15, 2022
Spots with dual structural colors on the skin of some organisms in nature are of interest due to the unique function of their dye-free colors. However, imitation of them requires complicated manufacturing processes, expensive equipment, and multiple predesigned building blocks. Researchers in Hong Kong have developed a one-pot strategy based on the phase-separation-assisted nonuniform self-assembly of monosized silica nanoparticles to construct domes with dual structural colors. In drying poly(ethylene glycol)-dextran-based (PEG-DEX) droplets, monosized nanoparticles distributed nonuniformly in two compartments due to the droplet inner flow and different nanoparticle compatibility with the two phases. The dome colors were derived from the self-assembled nanoparticles and were programmable by regulating the assembly conditions. The one-pot strategy enabled the preparation of multicolor using only one type of building block. According to
the researchers their work shows a promising applications in information delivery…read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Graphical abstract. Credit: Nano Lett. 2022, 22, 13, 5236–5243, June 22, 2022Â