51. Disassembly and reassembly of diphenylalanine crystals through evaporation of solvent
- Author
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Hongqian Cao, Jiarui Xia, Chenlei Wang, Bingbing Sun, Junbai Li, Yang Yang, Nan Sun, and Yi Jia
- Subjects
Work (thermodynamics) ,Materials science ,Hexagonal crystal system ,02 engineering and technology ,Crystal structure ,010402 general chemistry ,021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology ,01 natural sciences ,Evaporation (deposition) ,0104 chemical sciences ,Surfaces, Coatings and Films ,Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials ,Biomaterials ,Solvent ,chemistry.chemical_compound ,Colloid and Surface Chemistry ,Monomer ,chemistry ,Chemical engineering ,Self-assembly ,Diphenylalanine ,0210 nano-technology - Abstract
Hypothesis Crystalline self-assemblies of diphenylalanine (FF) are since long back considered to be related to Alzheimer's disease. An improved understanding of the mechanism behind the formation of such structures can lead to strategies for investigating the dynamic processes of assembly and disassembly of FF. Experiment The assembly, disassembly and reassembly of FF crystals are influenced by the solvent composition and can be triggered by evaporation of solvent. In this work these processes are directly monitored, and the structures obtained are analyzed. Findings The role of the solvent for assembly, disassembly and reassembly of diphenylalanine crystals has been demonstrated. The initial crystal structure formed via self-assembly of FF monomers can be transformed into needle-like crystals and further to hollow hexagonal microtubes through evaporation of the solvent. It is shown that all the assembly-disassembly processes are spontaneous and driven by thermodynamics. It is also found that some of the crystalline structures exhibit optical waveguiding properties.
- Published
- 2021