Integrating Directed Assembly and 3D Printing to Enable Advanced Nanomanufacturing Across Multiple Length Scales

获得精确控制尺寸、形状和组成的纳米材料构件为新兴纳米技术创造了丰富的机会空间。原型纳米材料启用技术跨越传感器，膜，催化，数据存储，电子，显示器，光电，能量存储和热电产生了很高的期望，其商业化。然而，人们越来越认识到，实现纳米材料技术的持续进展关键取决于解决突出的制造挑战;特别是需要弥合毫米级器件和纳米级组件之间的长度差距。这项研究将开发领先的纳米制造能力，以制造具有精确编程的结构，组成和功能的材料和设备，其长度范围为六个数量级。该研究的驱动力是对单个纳米结构（原子级长度尺度）的组合控制，微米超级结构的可编程分子组装和先进制造方法（从微米到米）为制造新类别的材料和设备提供了令人兴奋的前景。除了先进纳米制造能力的科学和技术影响外，该项目的教育目标将通过开发交互式3D打印学习模块，为本科生和少数民族提供研究机会。纳米材料定向组装和增材制造技术的进步为解决可扩展纳米纤维的关键挑战创造了强大的前景。一方面，自组装纳米结构的技术应用（例如，纳米颗粒超晶格）受到缺乏可规模化制造方法的限制。另一方面，目前可用的3D打印技术受到速度、空间分辨率和材料多样性的限制。该项目将探讨这两个领域交叉点的协同作用。研究团队接受了弥合这一长度差距的挑战，并将其作为开发新型纳米制造技术的机会，这些技术协同联合收割机在分子级组装和添加剂3D打印方面的最新进展。该项目将探索流体界面连续增材纳米制造（CANFI）的概念。该项目的新知识将为先进的分层纳米制造技术建立科学和工程基础，这些技术在长度尺度上跨越6个数量级。除了工作重点的特定模型系统之外，这项工作产生的知识预计将产生显着的倍增效应，并可能刺激相关领域的纳米制造进步。

Access to nanomaterial building blocks with precisely controlled size, shape and composition has created a fertile opportunity space for emerging nanotechnologies. Prototype nanomaterial-enabled technologies spanning sensors, membranes, catalysis, data storage, electronics, displays, photovoltaics, energy storage, and thermoelectrics have generated high expectations for their commercialization. However, there is growing recognition that sustained progress towards the acclaimed promise of nanomaterial-enabled technologies depends critically on solving outstanding fabrication challenges; in particular the need to bridge the length-scale gap between millimeter scale devices and nanometer scale components. This research will develop spearheading nanomanufacturing capabilities to fabricate materials and devices with precisely programmed structure, composition, and function across six orders of magnitude in length scale. The research is driven by the vision that combined control over individual nanostructures (at atomistic length scales), programmable molecular assembly of micrometer superstructures and advanced manufacturing methods (spanning micrometer to meter) presents exciting prospects to manufacture new classes of materials and devices. Beyond the scientific and technological impact of advanced nanomanufacturing capabilities, the educational objectives of this project will focus research opportunities for undergraduates and minorities by developing interactive 3D printing learning modules. The confluence of advances in directed assembly of nanomaterials and additive manufacturing technologies create powerful prospects to address critical challenges in scalable nanofabrication. On the one hand, technological applications of self-assembled nanostructures (e.g., nanoparticle superlattices) are limited by the lack of scalable fabrication methods. On the other hand, currently available 3D printing technologies are limited by speed, spatial resolution and material diversity. This project will explore synergies at the intersection of these two fields. The research team embraces the challenge of bridging this length scale gap as an opportunity to develop novel nanomanufacturing techniques that synergistically combine recent advances in molecular-level assembly and additive 3D printing. This project will explore the concept of continuous additive nanomanufacturing at Fluid Interfaces (CANFI). New knowledge from the project will establish the scientific and engineering foundation for advanced hierarchical nanomanufacturing techniques that span 6 orders of magnitude in length scale. Beyond the specific model systems at the focus of the work, the knowledge generated from this work is expected to have significant multiplying effects and will likely spur additional nanomanufacturing advances in related fields.