Related papers: Topological defect engineering enables size and sh…
Topological defects -- locations of local mismatch of order -- are a universal concept playing important roles in diverse systems studied in physics and beyond, including the universe, various condensed matter systems, and recently, even…
In micro- and nano-scale systems, particles can be moved by using an external force like gravity or a magnetic field. In the presence of adhesive particles that can attach to each other, the challenge is to decide whether a shape is…
The efficient and controlled assembly of complex structures from macromolecular building blocks is a critical open question in both biological systems and nanoscience. Using molecular dynamics simulations we study the self-assembly of…
Topological defects in nematically aligned cell populations play a critical role in modulating collective motion, from microbial colonies to epithelial tissues. Despite the potential of manipulating such topological defects to control…
Topological defects in active liquid crystals can be confined by introducing gradients of activity. Here, we examine the dynamical behavior of two defects confined by a sharp gradient of activity that separates an active circular region and…
Recent advances in synthetic methods enable designing subunits that self-assemble into structures with precise, finite sizes and well-defined architectures, but yields are frequently suppressed by the formation of off-target metastable…
The ability to control quantum systems using shaped fields as well as to infer the states of such controlled systems from measurement data are key tasks in the design and operation of quantum devices. Here we associate the success of…
Optically trapped mixed-species single atom arrays with arbitrary geometries are an attractive and promising platform for various applications, because tunable quantum systems with multiple components provide extra degrees of freedom for…
DNA origami is a powerful method to achieve nanoscale folded structures. Despite rapid improvements in folding and purification methods, DNA origami objects are still often produced in small quantities and studied at single molecule scale.…
In a hierarchical nanopatterning routine relying exclusively on self-assembly processes we combine crystal surface reconstruction, microphase separation of copolymers, and selective metal diffusion to produce monodisperse metal…
Many structural properties of conventional passive materials are known to arise from the symmetries of their microscopic constituents. By contrast, it is largely unclear how the interplay between cell shape and self-propulsion controls the…
Anisotropic rod-like particles form liquid crystalline phases with varying degrees of orientational and translational order. When confined geometrically, these phases can give rise to topological defects, which can be selected and…
One of the frontiers of nanotechnology is advancing beyond the periodic self-assembly of materials. Icosahedral quasicrystals, aperiodic in all directions, represent one of the most challenging targets that have yet to be experimentally…
Building structures with hierarchical order through the self-assembly of smaller blocks is not only a prerogative of nature, but also a strategy to design artificial materials with tailored functions. We explore in simulation the…
Photonic state engineering in waveguide QED is typically based on local light-matter interactions. This limits its control over the spatial structure of bound photonic states. Here, we demonstrate a distinct mechanism arising from the…
Engineering synthetic materials that mimic the remarkable complexity of living organisms is a fundamental challenge in science and technology. We study the spatiotemporal patterns that emerge when an active nematicfilm of microtubules and…
The ordering of nanoparticles into predetermined configurations is of importance to the design of advanced technologies. In this work, we moderate the surface anchoring against the bulk elasticity of liquid crystals to dynamically shape…
We present topological derivative and energy based procedures for the imaging of micro and nanostructures using one beam of visible light of a single wavelength. Objects with diameters as small as 10 nm can be located, and their position…
Pairs of atomic scale terraces on a single crystal metal surface can be made to merge controllably under suitable conditions to yield steps of double height and width. We study the effect of various physical parameters on the formation of…
The application of nanocrystals as heterogeneous catalysts and plasmonic nanoparticles requires fine control of their shape and chemical composition. A promising idea to achieve synergistic effects is to combine two distinct chemical and/or…