In this research we consider two different approaches for microfabricating physical templates to be used in template directed colloidal self-assembly experiments. Fabrication of templates, usable with confocal microscopy, forms an essential part of observation and analysis of template directed colloidal self-assembly studies. We use existing laboratory based microfabrication methods for patterning thin glass coverslips and polymeric films. These templates when used for directing colloidal self-assembly along with confocal microscopy analysis provide us with relevant information on the effect of confined geometries of the template on particle packing and order. The first method of template fabrication involves ultraviolet photolithography, thin film deposition, and glass micro machining. Various stages of the process were optimized while selecting reactive ion etch (RIE) and nickel etch mask with a suitable etch recipe for microfabrication of patterns on thin multi-component glass coverslips. Pattern dimensions were shown to be nearly commensurate with patterns on the microfiche, which was used as a field mask. In another approach, mechanical machining for fabricating polymeric templates was attempted on poly(methyl methacrylate) films spin coated on thin glass cover slips. The mechanical machining was implemented using computer numerical control (CNC) machines with the pattern dimensions in the range of 50 Mu m-150 Mu m. The glass and polymeric templates were used in template directed colloidal self-assembly experiments us ing polystyrene or silica particles. Confocal microscopy was used to obtain images of particle packing in template geometries. Imaging of the particles confined in the template geometries show increased particle concentration along pattern walls and corners. Inherent pattern irregularities and roughness possibly resulted in limited order in particle. Using a simple fortran program, image stack generated from confocal microscopy is used for obtaining images of particle packing in four different view planes which includes top, side, cross sectional and diagonal view of the image stack. The results from this research show the application of simple microfabrication processes for creating physical templates for template directed colloidal self-assembly. Confocal microscopy imaging combined with fortran image processing program can provide images of particle packing in different view planes. These images of the particles confined in various pattern geometries illustrate greater possibility of packing order in straight and regular pattern geometries or profiles.

This study presents a novel polyimide-based self-assembly three dimensional micro blade using surface micromachining technology for the development of micro-fan chip. The high surface-tension-force of reflowed polyimide has can be used to lift the free-standing micro blade. In addition, the thesis introduces a micro hinge structure to effectively limit the maximum lifting angle of the micro blade and to accurately lock hinge-pin into the vertical position. Many parameters have been investigated its influence on the surface-tension- force of polyimide, including the thickness of polyimide and the temperature/time in reflow processing. Based on the experimental results, 18 £gm-thick polyimide can lift the micro blade at 70¢X angle under 380 ¢J/10 hrs reflow condition. On the other hand, 25 £gm-thick polyimide has demonstrated its maximum lifting angle can be achieved to 130¢X utilizing the very high surface-tension-force induced by over contraction and deformation when it was reflowed at higher temperature (400 ¢J). Finally, this dissertation has studied the relation between the position of polyimide elastic-joint and the deflection angle (£r). Furthermore, this thesis has successfully demonstrated a novel multi-joint and asymmetrical microstructure for the development of the spiral and out-of-plane 3D micro blade.

<p>Imagine if you could combine the power and capabilities ofan entire laboratory in the palm of your hand. Advances inmicrofluidic chip technology promise to integrate andminiaturize multiple lab processes into a single palm-sizeddevice. The advantages of these lab-on-a-chip devices,sometimes also referred to as micro total analysis systems(µTAS), compared with conventional bench-scale systems arenumerous and wide ranging and include: less reagentconsumption, low manufacturing costs, increased performance,faster analysis, high sample throughput, integration andautomation possibilities, and disposability. However,microfluidic devices also present challenges such as theinterfacing to the macro world and detection limits.</p><p>In this thesis the focus has been to develop novel discretemicrofluidic components for biotechnology and organic chemicalapplications with the goal to integrate them to formlab-on-chips. A flow-through filter-chamber device has beendesigned, manufactured and evaluated for chemical analysis onbeads. Passive liquid handling has been integrated on the chipin the form of hydrophobic valves at the inlet channels. Anarray format has also been developed to allow parallel analysisof multiple samples. The filter-chamber functions well forsingle nucleotide analysis using pyrosequencing. Initialevaluations on catalyst screening in the filter-chamber devicehas been performed.</p><p>The suitability of valve-less micropumps for biochemicalapplications is presented. Fluids encountered in variousbiochemical methods, including living cells, that areproblematic for other micropumps have been pumped with goodperformance. This thesis also introduces expandablemicrospheres as a novel component in microfluidics includingapplications such as one-shot valves, micropositioning andsurface enlargement.</p><p>A novel technique for bead immobilization in microfluidicdevices based on surface chemistry is presented in this thesis.Beads for both biochemical assays and organic chemistry havebeen self-sorted and self-assembled in line patterns as narrowas 5 µm on both structured and unstructured substrates.This method will greatly facilitate the generation of screeningplatforms, for example.</p><p>To develop a microfluidic device for catalysis-on-chip,ligands for asymmetric catalysis have successfully beenimmobilized in silicon channels by consecutive microcontactprinting, which is a novel technique presented in thisthesis.</p><p><b>Keywords:</b>microfluidics, beads, microspheres, silicon,filter-chamber, flow-through, bead trapping, DRIE, passivevalves, fluorocarbon, microfluidic array, adhesive bonding,valve-less micropump, microcontact printing, PDMS,self-assembly, self-sorting, DNA, SNP, pyrosequencing,allele-specific extension, expandable microspheres, catalysis,chiral ligand, monolayer, miniaturization, lab-on-a-chip,µTAS.</p>

Thesis (M.Sc.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2001. / Restricted until June 2002. The CD-ROM "contains the latest version of the simulation code. The code is contained in .tar.gz, .tar.Z and .zip files. There are also brief instructions for the interested reader on how to compile and run the simulations"--Appendix A. Bibliography: leaves 122-137.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Dept of Chemistry, August 2003. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2002. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 187-201).

In this thesis, we study the problem of what microscopic thermodynamic driving forces can stabilize target macroscopic structures. First, we demonstrate that inverse statistical mechanical optimization can be used to rationally design inter-particle interactions that display target open structures as ground states over a wide range of thermodynamic conditions. We focus on designing simple interactions (e.g., isotropic, convex-repulsive) that drive the spontaneous assembly of material constituents to low-coordinated ground states of diamond and simple cubic lattices. This is significant because these types of phases are typically accessible given more complex systems (e.g., particles with orientation-dependent attractive interactions) and for a narrow range of conditions. We subject the optimal interactions to stringent stability tests and also observe assembly of the target structures from disordered fluid states. We then use extensive free energy based Monte Carlo simulation techniques to construct the equilibrium phase diagrams for the model materials with interactions designed to feature diamond and simple cubic ground states, i.e., at zero temperatures. We find that both model materials, despite the largely featureless interaction form, display rich polymorphic phase behavior featuring not only thermally stable target ground state structures, but also a variety of other crystalline (e.g., hexagonal and body-centered cubic) phases. Next, we investigate whether isotropic interactions designed to stabilize given two-dimensional (2D) lattices (e.g., honeycomb or square) will favor their analogous three-dimensional (3D) structures (e.g., diamond or simple cubic), and vice versa. We find a remarkable transferability of isotropic potentials designed to stabilize analogous morphologies in 2D and 3D, irrespective of the exact interaction form, and we discuss the basis of this cross-dimensional behavior. Our results suggest that computationally inexpensive 2D material optimizations can assist in isolating rare isotropic interactions that drive the assembly of materials into 3D open lattice structures. / text

Not available / text

Colloids are promising building blocks in material synthesis because of their controllability of size and surface properties. The synthesis of chemically and/or geometrically anisotropic colloidal particles has received attentions with the expectation of building blocks for complex structures. However, the synthesis of anisotropic colloidal particles is by far more difficult than the synthesis of spherical colloidal particles. Lack of monodispersity and productivity of many anisotropic particles often limits their applications as a building block for complex structures. Thus, it is highly desirable to develop methods which can produce a large amount of monodisperse non-spherical particles with controllable asymmetric surface properties. This dissertation details the work for developing such a method. The major result of this dissertation is a synthetic method to produce monodisperse non-spherical colloids with anisotropic surface property in a large quantity. The anisotropic colloid, which we call it as Dimer particle, has two fused lobes like a dumbbell and each lobe’s size can be independently controlled. We present a novel method to synthesize sub-micron size Dimer particles. This method can produce a large amount of submicron-sized Dimer particles with good monodispersity and well-controlled shape. Submicron-sized Dimer particles have been highly desired since they can be used as a building block for self assembly using Brownian motion, colloidal surfactant for Pickering emulsion, and photonic materials. To fully take advantage of the anisotropy of the particles, we develop a facile method to tailor the surface property of each lobe independently by asymmetrically coating the particles with gold nanoparticles. This method doesn’t need the arrangement of particles onto any type of interfaces. Asymmetric coating of gold nanoparticles can be carried out simply by mixing Dimer particles with gold nanoparticles. The formation mechanism of the submicron-sized Dimer particles is explained with evidences. Finally, we illustrate that Dimer particles show rich phase behavior under electric fields and explain the behavior by considering various interactions involved in the system. Our investigation shows that electric field can effectively control the orientation and assembled structure of Dimer particles. In conclusion, these asymmetrically functionalized Dimer particles are promising building blocks to generate suprastructures that will be useful in photonic, electronic and diagnostic applications. / Engineering and Applied Sciences

Colloidal semiconductor nanoparticles (NPs) contain hundreds to thousands of atoms in a roughly spherical shape with diameters in the range of 1-10 nm. The extremely small particle size confines electron transitions and creates size tunable bandgaps, giving rise to the name quantum dots (QDs). The unique optoelectronic properties of QDs enable a broad range of applications in optical and biological sensors, solar cells, and light emitting diodes. The most common compound semiconductor combination is chalcogenide II-VI materials, such as ZnSe, CdSe, and CdTe. But III-V and group IV as well as more complicated ternary materials have been demonstrated. Coordinating organic ligands are used to cap the NP surface during the synthesis, as a mean of protecting, confining, and separating individual particles. This study investigated the impact of the ligand on particle growth and self-assembly into hierarchical structures. ZnSe QDs were synthesized using an aqueous route with four different thiol ligands, including 3-mercaptopropionic acid (MPA), thioglycolic acid (TGA), methyl thioglycolate (MTG), and thiolactic acid (TLA). The particle growth was monitored as a function of reaction time by converting the band gaps measured using UV-vis spectroscopy into particle sizes. A kinetic model based on a diffusion-reaction mechanism was developed to simulate the growth process. The growth data were fit to this model, yielding the binding strength in the order TLA < MTG ≈ TGA < MPA. This result showed the relationship between the QD growth rates and the chemical structures of the ligands. Ligands containing electron-withdrawing groups closer to the anchoring S atom and branching promoted growth, whereas longer, possibly bidendate, ligands retarded it. Removing TGA ligands from the surface of CdTe QDs in a controlled manner yielded new superstructures that were composed of either intact or fused particles. Purifying as-synthesized QDs by precipitating them using an anti-solvent removed most of the free ligand in solution. Aging this purified QD suspension for a week caused self-assembly of QDs into nanoribbons. The long time needed for self-assembly was due to the slow equilibrium between the ligands on QD surface and in solution. Accelerating the approach to equilibrium by diluting purifed CdTe QDs with organic solvents triggered rapid self-assembly of superstructures within a day, forming various nanostructures from nanoribbons to nanoflowers. The type of nanostructures that formed was determined by the solvation of TGA in the trigger solvent. Extracting the smallest portion of TGA in methanol promoted vectorial growth into ribbons consistent with dipole-dipole attractive and charge-charge repulsive interactions. Removing more of the TGA layer in IPA caused the dots to fuse into webs containing clustered ribbons and branches, and the directional nature of the superstructure was lost. Completely deprotecting the surface in acetone promoted photochemical etching and dissolved the QDs, yielding ower-like structures composed of CdS. Nanocrystal (NC) growth mediated by a ligand was also studied in the organic synthesis of FeS₂ nanocubes. Oleylamine was used not only as the ligand but also the solvent and reductant during the reaction. A one hour reaction between iron (II) chloride and elemental sulfur in oleylamine at 200 ℃ and a S to Fe ratio of 6 yielded phase pure pyrite cubes with dimensions of 87.9±14.1 nm. X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra and Raman peaks for pyrite at 340, 375, and 426 cm⁻¹ confirmed phase purity. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results showed that the oleylamine remained on the FeS₂ surface as a ligand. The reaction mechanism includes the production of pyrrhotite Fe₁₋ᵪS (0≤x<0.5) via reduction of S⁰ to S²⁻ by oleylamine and the oxidation of pyrrhotite to pyrite with remaining S⁰.