self-assembly

Position Description: Multiple postdoctoral associate positions in the area of advanced synthesis and nano/micro-scale characterization of nanoparticles and nanocomposites are available at Rice University. Various techniques will be applied to synthesize and self-assemble size- and shape-controlled (calcium) silicate-polymer nanoparticles followed by nano- and micro-characterizations including a myriad of probes such as electron microscopies (TEM, XRD, SEM, AFM), ICP, XPS, NMR, porosimetry, dynamic mechanical analysis, nanoindentation, etc.

World Congress on Computational Mechanics (WCCM XII) &

6th Asia-Pacific Congress on Computational Mechanics (APCOM VI)

Position Description: Two postdoctoral associate positions in the area of advanced synthesis and nano/micro-scale characterization of nanoparticles are available at Rice University. Various techniques will be applied to synthesize and self-assemble size- and shape-controlled silicate nanoparticles followed by nano- and micro-characterizations including a myriad of probes such as electron microscopies (TEM, XRD, SEM, AFM), ICP, XPS, NMR, porosimetry, dynamic mechanical analysis, nanoindentation, etc.

Hydrogenation-Assisted Graphene Origami and Its Application in Programmable Molecular Mass Uptake, Storage, and Release 

Shuze Zhu and Teng Li, ACS Nano, 8 (3), pp 2864–2872 (2014)

Position Description: Two postdoctoral associate positions, one in computations and one in experiments, are available at Rice University. The first position is in the area of atomistic and molecular modeling of nanoscale defects, dislocations and mechanics of complex, low symmetry compounds. The computational techniques will be integrated to approaches from statistical mechanics and physical chemistry to provide quantitative predictions of properties of complex materials across different time- and length-scales. 

In a recent rapid communication (see attached paper), using principles of pattern formation, we expose some simple stategies to reliably produce perfect long range order in self-assembling systems. Most self-assembling systems exhibit short ranged order. This imperfection is detrimental to several practical applications. It is almost always possible to produce perfect patterns in small domain sizes but self-assembly over a larger areal span results in defects.