Inorganic Nanocrystals: from Molecular Chemistry to Supermolecular Chemistry

Nanoscience is recognized as one of the most exciting frontiers in modern science. This excitement stems from the impact nanoscience is having in both basic science and technology development. Inorganic nanocrystals, which are often described as "artificial atoms," are among the most important classes of building blocks in nanoscience and nanotechnology. This talk will discuss the fundamental principles behind the synthesis of high-quality nanocrystals. In addition, we will show that these principles can be used to control nanocrystal assembly through a supramolecular synthesis, which has resulted in a new type of well-defined colloidal superparticle (i.e., supercrystalline collection of artificial atoms in the form of colloidal particle). The ability to control nanocrystal synthesis and assembly will open a rational way to fabricate functional materials of interest for applications such as biomedical diagnosis, catalysis, plasmonics, and high-density data storage.