@article { ISI:000323014200005,
	title = {Nanoparticle size controls aggregation in lamellar nonionic surfactant mesophase},
	journal = {Langmuir},
	volume = {29},
	number = {31},
	year = {2013},
	month = {AUG},
	pages = {9643-9650},
	publisher = {AMER CHEMICAL SOC},
	address = {1155 16TH ST, NW, WASHINGTON, DC 20036 USA},
	abstract = {<p>We show that the size of silica nanoparticles influences the nature of their aggregation in an aqueous solution of a relatively hydrophobic nonionic surfactant, C12E4. We present results for dispersions of silica nanopartides with sizes varying from 8 to 26 nm, in a 75: 25 C12E4/water system, that forms a lamellar phase, L-alpha, at room temperature. Addition of silica particles does not affect the formation of the L-alpha phase. Nanoparticles smaller than about 11 nm aggregate irreversibly in the C12E4/water system. However, nanoparticles larger than about 15 nm aggregate in the L-alpha phase, but are dispersed at temperatures above the L-alpha order-disorder temperature. Thus, in contrast to the smaller particles, aggregation of silica nanopartides larger than about 15 nm is reversible with temperature. We use small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) demonstrate that these results can be explained by the size-dependent wrapping of nanoparticles by surfactant bilayers. Larger particles, above 15 nm in size, are sterically stabilized by the formation of an adsorbed surfactant bilayer. The cost of bilayer bending inhibits adsorption onto the highly curved surfaces of smaller particles, and these {\textquoteleft}{\textquoteleft}bare{\textquoteright}{\textquoteright} particles aggregate irreversibly.</p>},
	issn = {0743-7463},
	doi = {10.1021/la4021977},
	author = {Venugopal, Edakkal and Aswal, Vinod K. and Kumaraswamy, Guruswamy}
}
@article {43718,
	title = {Nanoparticle assembly: a perspective and some unanswered questions},
	journal = {Current Science},
	volume = {112},
	year = {2017},
	month = {APR},
	pages = {1635-1641},
	type = {Article},
	abstract = {In early 2016, the Royal Society of Chemistry arranged a meeting on the topic {\textquoteright}Nanoparticle Assemblies: from Fundamentals to Applications{\textquoteright} which was hosted at IIT-Bombay, Mumbai. The meeting brought several leading nanoscience and nanotechnology researchers to India and is only the second Faraday Discussions meeting to have been held in the country. The papers presented at the meeting and the resulting active discussions have been summarized in a Faraday Discussion issue(1). The broad range of topics discussed at the meeting led to an understanding on where we stand in the field of nanoparticle assembly, and also enunciated some of the outstanding fundamental and practical issues that remain to be resolved before these ideas can be applied to practical situations. Driven by these ideas, here we focus on four topics/questions: (i) Can we achieve function-driven design of nanoparticle assemblies? (ii) What is the minimal information needed to build a desired assembly? (iii) How complex a structure can one build? How can one make it responsive? What are the relative roles of equilibrium versus dynamics in the assembly process, and are we at a point where we can now pursue active assembly as a viable mode for creating complex assemblies? (iv) What are the applications that are being targeted and what are the barriers to implementation? In this perspective, we do not present an exhaustive survey of the vast literature in this area, but indicate overarching themes/questions that require immediate attention, largely based on the discussions at the Mumbai meeting.},
	author = {Kumar, Sanat K. and Kumaraswamy, Guruswamy and Prasad, Bhagavatula L. V. and Bandyopadhyaya, Rajdip and Granick, Steve and Gang, Oleg and Manoharan, Vinothan N. and Frenkel, Daan and Kotov, Nicholas A.}
}
