Nanowerk July 25, 2023
Continuous nanolattices are an emerging class of mechanical metamaterials that are highly attractive due to their superior strength-to-weight ratios, which originate from their spatial architectures and nanoscale-sized elements possessing near-theoretical strength. Rational design of frameworks remains challenging below 50 nm because of limited methods to arrange small elements into complex architectures. A team of researchers in the US (Columbia University, Brookhaven National Laboratory, University of Connecticut) fabricated silica frameworks with ∼4- to 20-nm-thick elements using self-assembly and silica templating of DNA origami nanolattices and performed in situ micro-compression testing to examine the mechanical properties. They observed strong effects of lattice dimensions on yield strength and failure mode. Silica nanolattices were found to exhibit yield strengths higher than those of any known engineering materials with similar mass density. According to the researchers robust coordination of the nanothin and strong silica elements leads to the combination of lightweight and high-strength framework materials offering an effective strategy for the fabrication of nanoarchitected materials with superior mechanical properties… read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Graphical abstract. Credit: Cell Reports Physics Science, Volume 4, Issue 7, 19 July 2023, 101475