The use of spontaneous self-assembly, as a lithographic tool and as an external field-free means to construct well-ordered and intriguing patterns, has received much attention due to its ease of producing complex, large-scale structures with small feature sizes. An extremely simple route to highly-ordered, complex structures is the evaporative self-assembly of nonvolatile solutes (e.g., polymers, nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, and DNA) from a sessile droplet on a solid substrate. To date, a few studies have elegantly demonstrated that self-organized nanoscale, microscale, and hierarchically structured patterns have been readily obtained from sophisticated control of droplet evaporation. These include convective assembly in evaporating menisci, the alignment of nanomaterials by programmed dip coating and controlled anisotrophic wetting/dewetting processes, facile microstructuring of functional polymers by the “Breath Figure” method, controlled evaporative self-assembly in confined geometries, etc.This book is unique in this regard in providing a wide spectrum of recent experimental and theoretical advances in evaporative self-assembly techniques. The ability to engineer an evaporative self-assembly process that yields a broad range of complex, well-ordered and intriguing structures with small feature sizes composed of polymers of nanocrystals of different size and shapes as well as DNA over large areas offers tremendous potential for applications in electronics, optoelectronics, photonics, sensors, information processing and data storage devices, nanotechnology, high-throughput drug discovery, chemical detection, combinatorical chemistry, and biotechnology.

The use of spontaneous self-assembly, as a lithographic tool and as an external field-free means to construct well-ordered and intriguing patterns, has received much attention. This book offers a spectrum of experimental and theoretical advances in evaporative self-assembly techniques.

Pattern formation is a fascinating and challenging aspect in polymer science. This book describes a number of unconventional approaches developed to control the morphology of polymer surfaces and materials, from random or simple patterns to complex structures. Specialists provide an up-to-date and complete overview of each technique in their respective field.

Materials Nanoarchitectonics: From Integrated Molecular Systems to Advanced Devices provides the latest information on the design and molecular manipulation of self-organized hierarchically structured systems using tailor-made nanoscale materials as structural and functional units. The book is organized into three main sections that focus on molecular design of building blocks and hybrid materials, formation of nanostructures, and applications and devices. Bringing together emerging materials, synthetic aspects, nanostructure strategies, and applications, the book aims to support further progress, by offering different perspectives and a strong interdisciplinary approach to this rapidly growing area of innovation. This is an extremely valuable resource for researchers, advanced students, and scientists in industry, with an interest in nanoarchitectonics, nanostructures, and nanomaterials, or across the areas of nanotechnology, chemistry, surface science, polymer science, electrical engineering, physics, chemical engineering, and materials science. Offers a nanoarchitectonic perspective on emerging fields, such as metal-organic frameworks, porous polymer materials, or biomimetic nanostructures Discusses different approaches to utilizing "soft chemistry" as a source for hierarchically organized materials Offers an interdisciplinary approach to the design and construction of integrated chemical nano systems Discusses novel approaches towards the creation of complex multiscale architectures

The ability of nanostructures to organize into complex arrangements leads to unique materials with valuable applications. Self-assembly is therefore a key concept for nanotechnology, but it can be quite a complex and difficult subject to approach. Water Droplets to Nanotechnology gives a simple and general overview of the different self-assembly processes which are at the basis of recent developments in nanotechnology. The book shows how simple phenomenon from everyday examples can become sophisticated tools for self-assembly and the fabrication of nanomaterials. By exploring the coffee stain and tears of wine phenomena, the first part looks at how the evaporation of a droplet of colloidal solution can be used in designing organized structures. This leads onto more complex systems such as templated porous materials, photonic crystals, colloidal nanocrystals and quasi-crystals through to bottom-up systems for designing hierarchal materials. By taking the reader on a journey from everyday life to the secrets of nanotechnology, the book is suitable for a non-specialist audience interested in self-assembly as well as the wider perspectives and latest developments of nanoscience.