(402g) 2D-Macromolecular Heterostructures Enabled Memristive Colloidal Particle

Arming nanoelectronics with mobility and self-awareness opens new opportunities in macromolecular science. Originally referred to as electronics based on chemically synthesized nanostructures, nanoelectronics today can also be fabricated following conventional top-down approaches that scale with Moore’s law. Although the subject has been studied intensively for the past two decades and finds application in a variety of disciplines from computing to energy generation, examples of nanoelectronics with mobility and on-board logics remain elusive. As an emerging paradigm that calls for several scientific and engineering disciplines to work in unison, it is necessary to establish a strong narrative that sets the field apart from similar concepts with explicit, unambiguous functions. In this context, I will discuss how the growing library of 2D-soft material composites, with the suite of exotic properties they command, has facilitated the symbiotic engraftment of electronics onto mobile colloidal particles,^[1] thus paving the way towards next-generation microrobotics with both low energy consumptions as well as complex functions.

I will focus on our recent efforts in synthesizing such 2D-macromolecular heterostructures, using a novel fabrication technique named autoperforation, owing to the spontaneous perforation of the grafted 2D materials around a pre-designed polymer template.^[1] This method lay the foundation of building the proposed colloidal state machines. We have demonstrated, for the first time, that nanoelectronic devices can be grafted onto and/or embedded within colloidal microparticles, creating autonomous machines capable of complex operations in a particulate form.^[1] The characteristic mobility of a colloidal system integrates seamlessly with the modularity that comes with modern digital electronics, enabling information collection and recording in enclosed spaces – such as the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract,^[1] microfluidic channels, and chemical/biosynthetic reactors – as well as remote locations like oil and gas conduits, waterbodies, soil, or the atmosphere.^[1] Ultimately, we envision an intelligent colloidal microrobot that collects, manipulates, and stores information autonomously, extending electronic systems into traditionally inaccessible environments.

1. Liu, A. T.; Liu, P. ^†; Kozawa, D.; Dong, J.; Yang, J. F.; Koman, V. B.; Saccone, M.; Wang, S.; Son, Y.; Wong, M. H.; Strano, M. S.* Nature Materials 2018, just accepted.