Dear Colleagues,

Self-assembly of nanoparticles (NPs) has become a very effective and promising approach to synthesize a wide range of novel nanoscale functional materials. NPs can arrange themselves in two or three dimensions, resulting in ordered and well-organized superstructures, which can exhibit interesting collective and/or synergistic properties that are different from those of individual colloidal NPs. However, the controlled synthesis of highly ordered assemblies of NPs remains a challenging task. The driving force for self-assembly is the interaction energies between the NPs, which are mainly dictated by combination of ligand–surface and ligand–ligand interactions. Therefore, by playing with those interactions as well as with the synthetic strategy, one can engineer stable nanoassemblies with the desired structure and properties. Taking advantage of the novel properties of these NPs’ assemblies, emerging applications in the areas of biomedicine, catalysis, electronics, and photonics are being explored.

This Special Issue is open to contributions on NPs’ assemblies regarding: (i) synthetic strategies and post-synthetic functionalization methods; (ii) fundamental studies for understanding the self-assembly process and the unique interplay of molecular and nanoscale effects; (iii) characterization of collective mechanical, electrical, thermal, optical, and/or chemical properties, as well as the possible synergistic effects; and (iv) development of potential applications for the new or improved assembled nanomaterials.

Dr. Carolina Carrillo-Carrión
Guest Editor

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• Colloidal nanoparticles
• Self-assembly
• Nanoassemblies
• Driving force
• Ligand-surface and ligand-ligand interactions
• Collective and/or synergistic properties