Scientists train nano-'building blocks' to take on new shapes

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Transmission electron microscopy image of one-dimensional assembled structures created by a research team from the University of Delaware and the University of Washington in St. Louis. Credit: Darrin PochanUniversity of Delaware
Transmission electron microscopy image of one-dimensional assembled structures created by a research team from the University of Delaware and the University of Washington in St. Louis. Credit: Darrin Pochan/University of Delaware

Researchers from the University of Delaware and Washington University in St. Louis have figured out how to train synthetic polymer molecules to behave--to literally “self-assemble” --and form into long, multicompartment cylinders 1,000 times thinner than a human hair, with potential uses in radiology, signal communication and the delivery of therapeutic drugs in the human body.


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