(699c) Biological Self-Recognition and Self-Assembly for the Next Generation of Hybrid Wires

Xiao Hu¹, Chenbo Dong¹, Rigu Su², Quan Xu^2*, and Cerasela Zoica Dinu¹*

¹Department of Chemical Engineering, West Virginia University, WV, USA

²State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing, China

Abstract

The next generation of nanowires that could help advance the integration of functional nanosystems into synthetic applications from photocatalysis to optical devices needs to demonstrate increased ability to promote electron transfer at their interface while ensuring quantum confinement. Current techniques used to synthesize the nanowires such as the interface lithography technology and chemical vapor deposition only allow for a limited control of the nanowireâ??s structureâ??property relationships thus limiting their implementation in applications and design of nano-functional devices. Herein we proposed to use the biological recognition and self-assembly properties of tubulin, normally involved in building the microtubule cellular structure, to create stable, free standing and conductive sulfur-doped carbon nanodots-based hybrid bio-nanowires. We evaluated the physico-chemical properties (e.g., composition, morphology, diameter etc.) of such user-synthesized hybrids using classical atomic and spectroscopic techniques, while the electron transfer rate was estimated using peak currents formed during voltammetry scannings. Such synthesized hybrid bio-nanowires have diameters ranging from 6 to 30 nm and were proved to be more stable than their biological skeletons. Our results demonstrate the ability to create individually addressable hybrid bio-nanowires capable to reduce energy losses at interfaces to be used for the advancement and implementation of nanometer-scale functional devices.