Spherical Confinement of Chromonics: Effects of a Chiral Aminoacid
Induced or spontaneous chirality in natural systems is an intriguing issue. In recent years, a lot of attention has been focused on chirality of chromonic liquid crystals, a class of materials that is able to self-assemble in columnar structures. However, the mechanism involved in the arising of chi...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-02-01
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| Series: | Nanomaterials |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/12/4/619 |
| _version_ | 1827653417872392192 |
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| author | Lorenza Spina Federica Ciuchi Caterina Maria Tone Riccardo Barberi Maria Penelope De Santo |
| author_facet | Lorenza Spina Federica Ciuchi Caterina Maria Tone Riccardo Barberi Maria Penelope De Santo |
| author_sort | Lorenza Spina |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Induced or spontaneous chirality in natural systems is an intriguing issue. In recent years, a lot of attention has been focused on chirality of chromonic liquid crystals, a class of materials that is able to self-assemble in columnar structures. However, the mechanism involved in the arising of chirality in these materials, that starts at the molecular level and controls the supramolecular structure, is poorly understood; however, it is certainly affected by ionic strength. In this work we present the results obtained doping Cromolyn, a chromonic material, with a strong helical-twisting-power peptide, and confining it in a spherical geometry. We demonstrate, by means of optical polarized microscopy and structural analysis, that both the geometrical constraint and the presence of the chiral dopant enhance the chiral effect; we also demonstrate that they favor the rise of a highly ordered helical superstructure, that may be optimized upon adding an ionic dye to the system. Finally, we report a procedure for the preparation of free-standing polymeric films, embedding and preserving the microspheres, and paving the way for the creation of biocompatible and eco-friendly optical devices to be used in the sensor and anticounterfeiting fields. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T21:19:33Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-275ebca0dbd24364929256e46a021b36 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-4991 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T21:19:33Z |
| publishDate | 2022-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nanomaterials |
| spelling | doaj.art-275ebca0dbd24364929256e46a021b362023-11-23T21:25:26ZengMDPI AGNanomaterials2079-49912022-02-0112461910.3390/nano12040619Spherical Confinement of Chromonics: Effects of a Chiral AminoacidLorenza Spina0Federica Ciuchi1Caterina Maria Tone2Riccardo Barberi3Maria Penelope De Santo4Physics Department, University of Calabria, Ponte Bucci, Cubo 31C, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende, ItalyCNR-Nanotec c/o Physics Department, University of Calabria, Ponte Bucci, Cubo 31C, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende, ItalyPhysics Department, University of Calabria, Ponte Bucci, Cubo 31C, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende, ItalyPhysics Department, University of Calabria, Ponte Bucci, Cubo 31C, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende, ItalyPhysics Department, University of Calabria, Ponte Bucci, Cubo 31C, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende, ItalyInduced or spontaneous chirality in natural systems is an intriguing issue. In recent years, a lot of attention has been focused on chirality of chromonic liquid crystals, a class of materials that is able to self-assemble in columnar structures. However, the mechanism involved in the arising of chirality in these materials, that starts at the molecular level and controls the supramolecular structure, is poorly understood; however, it is certainly affected by ionic strength. In this work we present the results obtained doping Cromolyn, a chromonic material, with a strong helical-twisting-power peptide, and confining it in a spherical geometry. We demonstrate, by means of optical polarized microscopy and structural analysis, that both the geometrical constraint and the presence of the chiral dopant enhance the chiral effect; we also demonstrate that they favor the rise of a highly ordered helical superstructure, that may be optimized upon adding an ionic dye to the system. Finally, we report a procedure for the preparation of free-standing polymeric films, embedding and preserving the microspheres, and paving the way for the creation of biocompatible and eco-friendly optical devices to be used in the sensor and anticounterfeiting fields.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/12/4/619chromonic liquid crystalschiral self-assemblyX-ray diffractionfunctional materials |
| spellingShingle | Lorenza Spina Federica Ciuchi Caterina Maria Tone Riccardo Barberi Maria Penelope De Santo Spherical Confinement of Chromonics: Effects of a Chiral Aminoacid Nanomaterials chromonic liquid crystals chiral self-assembly X-ray diffraction functional materials |
| title | Spherical Confinement of Chromonics: Effects of a Chiral Aminoacid |
| title_full | Spherical Confinement of Chromonics: Effects of a Chiral Aminoacid |
| title_fullStr | Spherical Confinement of Chromonics: Effects of a Chiral Aminoacid |
| title_full_unstemmed | Spherical Confinement of Chromonics: Effects of a Chiral Aminoacid |
| title_short | Spherical Confinement of Chromonics: Effects of a Chiral Aminoacid |
| title_sort | spherical confinement of chromonics effects of a chiral aminoacid |
| topic | chromonic liquid crystals chiral self-assembly X-ray diffraction functional materials |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/12/4/619 |
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