CRC TRR 61 A04 - Micro-optomechanical assembly of site-specifically modified zeolite L microcrystals

Basic data for this project

Description

Dynamic self-assembly of chemically modified zeolite L crystals for the construction of crystal chains will be studied applying dynamic covalent bond formation. Known reversible reactions will be tested along that line. More sophisticated crystal assembly will be addressed using complex optical tweezers to properly orient two or more different zeolites bearing complementary chemical functionalities that allow for bond formation. This optomechanical approach should allow building up more complex architectures, including two-dimensional structures as rings or even three-dimensional structures, which are not accessible by the former self-assembly approach. To “chemically” glue zeolites we will also use multiple host stabilized charge transfer interactions and com-plementary DNA strands (non-covalent bond formation). With these more robust surface modifications, the optically induced micro-optomechanical assembly process will be easy enough to manage so that even heterogeneous assemblies can be created “bottom-up”, leading to photonic micro systems with fundamental functions, including harvesting, generation, and guiding of light. Furthermore, using adapted surface modifications, we will demonstrate bio-hybrid assemblies of zeolite L crystals and model bacteria, further emphasising the universal versatility of the optomechanical approach. Finally, photochemical release of bioactive molecules will be studied and – as a visionary goal – the so far developed concepts will be employed to optimise the photorelease with respect to biocompatibility (i. e. wavelength) and efficiency (i. e. light yield).