Biologically Inspired Controls over Assembly of Crystalline Nanostructures

摘要

In an effort to understand the physical principles governing the controls on the growth of nanocrystals exerted by living organisms during tissue mineralization, we have performed in situ AFM studies of crystal growth from solution on a number of systems in which inorganic and organic modifiers have been added to alter morphology and kinetics. The results reveal a variety of mechanisms by which modifier-surface interactions affect growth to generate new facets or pseudo-facets, but suggest that, in general, controls over morphology and kinetics are maintained by step-specific interactions on pre-exisitng crystal faces.