Projects
Boron Nitride nanomesh for actuated self-assembly KU Leuven
The boron nitride nanomesh is a corrugated, one-atom-thick layer of boron nitride on rhodium metal and has the unique property of trapping individual molecules in its pores, about 3 nanometer apart. In a recent breakthrough, accepted for publication in Nature, we demonstrated that atomic hydrogen can be intercalated between the boron nitride layer and the metal substrate, and can be used to tune the binding strength of adsorbates on the ...
Structure, self-assembly and function of cyclic lipodepsipeptides from Pseudomonads by drafting their bacterial biosynthetic machinery for NMR spectroscopic duty Ghent University
Cyclic lipodepsipeptides from Pseudomonas bacteria display a very diverse set of biological functions and activities. By elucidating the structure of new representatives and study their intermolecular association – partly using a novel and advanced approach that involves stable isotope labelled compounds obtained through biosynthesis – our understanding of the structure-function relationship will achieve a much higher level than currently ...
Configuration of Actives Surfaces by Self-Assembly (CASAS). KU Leuven
Modification of 2D materials like graphene and MoS2 by molecular self-assembly: structure and function. KU Leuven
2Dfun aims at establishing 2D layers and heterogeneous layer stacks as basic building blocks of, and demonstrate them in functional devices. To this end, 2Dfun will develop growth processes for 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (MX2) on graphene (with graphene coming from external resources within the Flagship) as well as high-k dielectric layers on MX2. Almost all work reported in literature in this area is based on natural MX2 material ...
Modifying graphene by nanostructuring by molecular selfassembly. KU Leuven
We investigate the morphological, electronic and magnetic properties of few-atom aggregates using tunneling microscopy and tunneling spectroscopy, including spin-polarized tunneling spectroscopy, in ultra-high vacuum and at low temperatures. The finite size as well as the shape of the aggregates will play a dominant role due the presence of pronounced quantum confinement effects. Two types of few-atom aggregates are targeted: islands that are ...
New ways to explore fundamentals of the formation of self-assembled molecular networks at the liquid-solid interface KU Leuven
The spontaneous organisation of molecules into ordered patterns or complex systems, i.e. self-assembly, emerges in nature and plays a crucial role in life. It enables the formation of intricate structures in biological membranes, guides DNA assembly, and directs protein folding. In supramolecular chemistry, rapid progress has sparked numerous possibilities for leveraging intermolecular interactions across various fields. The development of ...
Structure and Kinetics of Self-Assembled Cellulose-Gold Nanoparticle Materials KU Leuven
In a biomimetic approach,we aim to create hierarchical multi-functionalone-, two- and three-dimensional structures with controlled long-range order through self-assembly of multifunctional rodlike nanoparticles. To achieve this, we will modify the surface of ribbon-like cellulose nanocrystals at their three distinct surface functionalities: primary and secondary hydroxyl groups on the lateral surfaces and aldehydes at the extremities. These ...