What is it about?
Aerogels are typically prepared by sol-gel chemistry. Here we show that aerogels with complex architecture can be produced via assembly of nanoparticles over several length scales.
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Why is it important?
Aerogels are typically compositionally relatively simple, amorphous materials. Using preformed nanocrystals as building blocks makes it possible to fabricate fully crystalline aerogels. If the nanocrystals are responsive to an external stimulus, then they can be arranged specifically in the gel to produce anisotropically structured materials.
Perspectives
In my opinion, this paper is a wonderful example how one can produce macroscopic materials from nanocrystalline building blocks, if the assembly process can be mastered over several orders of length scales. The obtained aerogel monoliths do no only exhibit a high structural complexity, but are also esthetically very beautiful.
Professor Markus Niederberger
ETH Zurich
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Anisotropically structured magnetic aerogel monoliths, Nanoscale, September 2014, Royal Society of Chemistry,
DOI: 10.1039/c4nr04694c.
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