Self-assembly as a research area investigates the spontaneous organization of components into ordered structures driven by local interactions and thermodynamic or kinetic principles, without direct external manipulation of each element. It encompasses molecular, nanoscale, and mesoscale systems where noncovalent forces (e.g., van der Waals, electrostatic, hydrophobic, hydrogen bonding) or specific binding interactions encode structural information. Research focuses on understanding design rules, energy landscapes, and defect formation, as well as developing programmable systems (e.g., DNA origami, block copolymers, colloidal crystals) for applications in materials science, nanotechnology, and biotechnology, often linking equilibrium self-assembly with nonequilibrium and hierarchical assembly processes.
A new study has uncovered how an exceptionally scarce protein can orchestrate the assembly of large-scale gene-silencing structures inside cells, and what happens when that process breaks down. The findings, published today ...
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 4, 2026
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17
Crystalline nanomaterials are valuable because their highly ordered structures give them useful properties for technologies such as data storage and optical devices. But forming nanoparticles from those orderly crystals is ...
Nanophysics
Mar 3, 2026
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15
Researchers at the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology (CEB) have found a new way to organize molecules inside living cells, opening possibilities for more controlled and efficient biomanufacturing. The team ...
Bio & Medicine
Feb 24, 2026
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45
Living cells are highly organized, yet they are not assembled using rigid blueprints or by following a predetermined plan. Instead, order emerges on its own from countless interactions between molecules that are constantly ...
Cell & Microbiology
Feb 18, 2026
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16
Imagine a "smart fluid" whose internal structure can be rearranged just by changing temperature. In a new study published in Matter, researchers report a way to overcome a long-standing limitation in a class of "smart fluids" ...
Optics & Photonics
Feb 17, 2026
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34
Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, working with international partners, have uncovered surprising behavior in a specially engineered crystal. Composed of tantalum, tungsten and selenium—elements ...
Condensed Matter
Feb 17, 2026
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80
When a cell divides, it performs a feat of microscopic choreography—duplicating its DNA and depositing it into two new cells. The spindle is the machinery behind that process: It latches onto chromosomes (where DNA is stored) ...
Cell & Microbiology
Feb 11, 2026
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70
An advance from Monash University could pave the way for faster, smaller, and more energy-efficient lasers and other light-based technologies. Engineers have developed a new type of perovskite material arranged into an ordered ...
Condensed Matter
Feb 8, 2026
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71
Scientists have identified the molecular interactions that give spider silk its exceptional strength and flexibility, opening the door to new bio-inspired materials for aircraft, protective clothing and medical applications, ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 6, 2026
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30
Since the dawn of the computer age, researchers have wrestled with two persistent challenges: how to store ever-increasing reams of data and how to protect that information from unintended access. Now, researchers with Arizona ...
Bio & Medicine
Feb 5, 2026
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