ORGANIZED SUPERSTRUCTURES AT NANOSCALE AND NEW FUNCTIONAL NANOMATERIALS

Abstract

We report on a number of new effects of self-organization at nanoscale, leading to creation of new functional nanomaterials, including carbon and carbon–metal nanotoroids and nanodiscs and self-assembling of magnetic nanoparticles into helices and chains. We also extensively used a new approach of biopattern nanoengineering to create DNA-based complexes with metal or CdSe / ZnS core-shell nanorods (22 × 4.5 nm) which possess strong linearly polarized photoluminescence due to unidirectional orientation of nanorods along DNA filaments. Optical, electrical, and topological (geometrical) properties of such complexes were investigated. This work is a result of a coherent effort (since 1980s) of a consortium of Russian research groups in Nano-technology (INTC: Interdisciplinary Nanotechnology Consortium) aimed at creating molecular electronic devices based on individual and collective properties of specially designed and fabricated nanoclusters.