title: Advances in the chemical fabrication of complex multimaterial nanocrystals.
abstract: In this work, recent achievements of nanochemistry research in the fabrication of colloidal nanoheterostructures are reviewed through revisiting relevant papers and related patents. Attention is focused on newly conceived generations of hybrid nanocrystals (HNCs) with a topologically controlled composition, in which size and shape tailored domains of different inorganic materials are permanently assembled together in a single multifunctional particle. Strategies for accessing HNCs in various configurations, such as core/shell systems, hetero-oligomers based on nearly spherical portions, and highly asymmetric nanostructures comprising joint sections with different shapes, are discussed. The chemical-physical properties and technological advantages offered by such complex nanocrystals are also highlighted.
authors.affiliation: National Nanotechnology Laboratory of CNR-INFM, Unità di Ricerca IIT, Distretto Tecnologico ISUFI, Via per Arnesano Km 5, I-73100 Lecce, Italy.
authors.forename: Raffaella
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Buonsanti
authors.forename: Marianna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Casavola
authors.forename: Gianvito
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Caputo
authors.forename: Pantaleo D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Cozzoli
mesh_terms: D016880:Anisotropy; D003102:Colloids; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends*
chemical_list: D003102:Colloids