Month: September 2022

STRUCTURE--> FUNCTION. “It was also demonstrated that the alignment of the nanocrystals in the mesocrystal is clearly advantageous for the physical properties. The cobalt mesocrystal showed a four times higher magnetic coercivity compared to unoriented nanoparticles.” https://lnkd.in/eNACsghr View in LinkedIn

MAGNETIC DRIVER. “Controlled rotation of a sample in a strong magnetic field with nonconstant velocity can also induce alignment along the magnetization axes for nanoparticles >10-100nm and thus 3D mesocrystal formation as demonstrated for L-alanine, which itself is not magnetic.” https://lnkd.in/eNACsghr View in LinkedIn

PRECURSORS. “Rapidly formed amorphous precursor structures are important in nonclassical reaction channels.” https://lnkd.in/eNACsghr View in LinkedIn

ENERGETICS. “These considerations show that a temporary stabilization of the nanoparticles is crucial for the nanoparticle orientation to a mesocrystal by interaction forces to maintain that the system is able find the point of minimal energy on its energy landscape. This means that thermal energy has to be able to populate all possible states.” https://lnkd.in/eNACsghr View in LinkedIn

OVERSHOOTS. “If the stabilization is too strong, the nanoparticles will repel each other keeping them in solution as stable nanoparticles. On the other hand, if the stabilization is too weak, colliding nanoparticles will stick to each other as their potential is in the primary minimum of the DLVO potential and they cannot change their mutual orientation anymore.” https://lnkd.in/eNACsghr View in LinkedIn

SO ENDS this first of two weekends on mesocrystals in naturally occurring biomineral materials. This weekend has focused on the chemistry of formation and the properties of mesocrystals, and the many gaps in our understanding. The next weekend transitions to the mesocrystals in natural materials. https://lnkd.in/eNACsghr View in LinkedIn

DISTRIBUTED INTELLIGENCE. “Eduardo Kohn: forests can think. Bees seem to be able to count, and can potentially understand the concept of zero or nothingness (Howard). Dictyostelium discoideum (slime molds) can exhibit similarly sophisticated behaviors despite not having a nervous system, much less a brain (Reid), and solve mazes.” https://lnkd.in/eb8yGxmV View in LinkedIn

The reductionist’s recurring nightmare is exactly how to put Humpty Dumpty back together again from all his pieces. https://lnkd.in/ef-dP2UT View in LinkedIn

GEOMETRY-ILLUMINATED. “The stress-energy tensor is disregarded (particles passing through are assumed to have a negligible effect on the configuration) as well as any cosmological constant. Without relative geometry, the setting is trivial.” https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/JHEP07(2019)140.pdf View in LinkedIn

+/- OBSTACLES. “With relative geometry, two points of reference are used: the particle paths in the absence of obstacles (defining straight lines in a vacuum reference frame), and the obstacles setting the geometry.” https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/JHEP07(2019)140.pdf View in LinkedIn