Research

A. Plant viruses as scaffolds for nanoscale structures

The Tobacco mosaic Virus (TMV) is the example for self-assembly. Its coat proteins assemble to well-defined 18 nm thick tubes with 4 nm wide channels.

1. Ultrathin metal and oxide wires: Synthesis and electrical/magnetic characterization of wires in and on Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV).

2. Filling of viral channels: Targeted drug delivery based on dissolved drugs confined in a 4 nm channel with chemically well-defined walls (TMV). End-capping of TMV with magnetic dumbbells, magnetic field-induced opening. See MAGNIFYCO

3. Nanofluidics: Assembly of TMV in polymer nanostructures. Microplacing of liquids. Study of wetting and liquid flow, i.a. with environmental SEM.

3. Virus-based ferrofluids: New shear-resistant ferrofluids based on nanorods. 20-50 nm thick ferromagnetic tubes produced by electroless deposition on TMV. Linker chemistry on TMV.

B. Electrospinning of self-assembling molecules to wires

Peptide wires/tubes: Steering the assembly of biomolecules, esp. peptides, by electrospinning to fibers. Simple creation of wire-like structures that are not attainable on other ways. Elucidation of assembly mechanisms. Characterization by Raman spectromicroscopy, electron microscopy, infrared spectroscopy, high spped microscopy, etc.

C. Self-assembling organic spintronics

Nanoscale devices: Compatible with deposition and organisation of organic conductors from solutions, tailored for contact with liquids, esp. solutions of organic semiconductors that cannot be evaporated.

D. Porous carbon electrodes for electrochemical capacitors and batteries

Ageing of real devices: Industrial and fundamental research tackling a major problem in energy storage, device ageing. Disassembly and cleaning of electrodes and other parts, multimethod analysis for (electro)chemical and structural modification of carbon. Procedures for the production of improved devices. Techniques: Voltammetry, nitrogen porosimetry, infrared and Raman spectroscopy, SEM, STM of model surfaces.