US chemists at Pennsylvania State University have developed a framework for the total synthesis of nanoparticles using processes analogous to the reactions in a synthetic scheme. The system uses solid-state nanoparticle analogs of chemoselective reactions, regiospecificity, coupling reactions, and molecular substituent effects to construct sophisticated hybrid nanoparticle oligomers. These artificial “molecules” are synthesized in a predictable and stepwise manner from organometallic building blocks.

The approach could allow multifunctional lab-on-a-particle systems to be developed for solar energy conversion, fuel-cell catalysis, medical imaging, and electronics.

• A total-synthesis framework for the construction of high-order colloidal hybrid nanoparticles
  M. R. Buck, J. F. Bondi, R. E. Schaak,
  Nature Chem. 2011.
  DOI: 10.1038/nchem.1195