New approaches to synthesis and assembly of nanostructured materials

New techniques have been developed to synthesize and assemble nanostructured materials. Many solution-based approaches to synthesizing porous nanostructures exhibit limited control over the dimensions and properties of the final product. Instead of solution-based methods, electrochemical synthetic techniques are used to fabricate hollow nanorods with tunable diameters, lengths, porosities, and morphologies. In addition, it is a challenge to assemble insoluble materials, such as porous nanorods, into well-defined patterns on a surface using many well-established methods. A new technique is developed to circumvent many of the limitations of other patterning techniques and create patterns from materials with a wide range of physical and chemical characteristics. This patterning technique is demonstrated by selectively transferring polymeric and metallic nanoparticles from a liquid interface into a variety of continuous patterns covering large areas (>1 mm2). This work has many potential applications, including the design of drug delivery vehicles and biosensors.