Multicompartment Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles with Branched Shapes: An Epitaxial Growth Mechanism

• DOI: 10.1126/science.1231391
• Publication Date: 2013-04-18T18:09:42Z
• Authors: Teeraporn Suteewong; Hiroaki Sai; Robert Hovden; David Muller; Michelle S. Bradbury; Sol M. Gruner; Ulrich Wiesner
• Keywords: Nanomaterials; Particle (ecology); Mesoporous organosilica

Mesoporous nanomaterials have attracted widespread interest because of their structural versatility for applications including catalysis, separation, and nanomedicine. We report a one-pot synthesis method class mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) containing both cubic hexagonally structured compartments within one particle. These multicompartment MSNs (mc-MSNs) consist core with cage-like morphology up to four branches packed cylindrical mesopores epitaxially growing out the vertices. The extent mesostructure growth can be controlled via single additive in synthesis. Results suggest path toward high levels architectural complexity locally amorphous, mesostructured nanoparticles, which could enable tuning different pore environments same particle specific chemistries catalysis or drug delivery.