Self-Assembly, Pattern Formation and Growth Phenomena in Nano-Systems

Nano-science and nano-technology are rapidly developing scientific and technological areas that deal with physical, chemical and biological processes that occur on nano-meter scale - one millionth of a millimeter. Self-organization and pattern formation play crucial role on nano-scales and promise new, effective routes to control various nano-scales processes. This book contains lecture notes written by the lecturers of the NATO Advanced Study Institute "Self-Assembly, Pattern Formation and Growth Phenomena in Nano-Systems" that took place in St Etienne de Tinee, France, in the fall 2004. They give examples of self-organization phenomena on micro- and nano-scale as well as examples of the interplay between phenomena on nano- and macro-scales leading to complex behavior in various physical, chemical and biological systems. They discuss such fascinating nano-scale self-organization phenomena as self-assembly of quantum dots in thin solid films, pattern formation in liquid crystals caused by light, self-organization of micro-tubules and molecular motors, as well as basic physical and chemical phenomena that lead to self-assembly of the most important molecule on the basis of which most of living organisms are built - DNA. A review of general features of all pattern forming systems is also given. The authors of these lecture notes are the leading experts in the field of self-organization, pattern formation and nonlinear dynamics in non-equilibrium, complex systems.

Inhalt

Dedication. Contributing Authors. Foreword. Preface. Acknowledgements. General aspects of pattern formation. 1. Introduction. 2. Basic models for domain coarsening and pattern formation. 3. Pattern selection. 4. Modulated patterns. 5. Beyond the Swift-Hohenberg model. 6. Wavy patterns. 7. Conclusions. 8. Acknowledgement. References.- Convective patterns in liquid crystals driven by electric field. 1. Physical properties of nematics. 2. Electroconvection. References.- Dynamical phenomena in nematic liquid crystals induced by light. 1. Simple setups - complicated phenomena. 2. Theoretical description. 3. Obliquely incident, linearly polarized light. 4. Perpendicularly incident, circularly polarized light. 5. Perpendicularly incident, elliptically polarized light. 6. Finite beam-size effects and transversal pattern formation. Acknowledgements. References.- Self-Assembly of quantum dots from thin solid films. 1. Introduction. 2. Mechanisms of morphological evolution of epitaxial films. 3. Elastic effects and wetting interactions. 4. Surface-energy anisotropy and wetting interactions. 5. Conclusions. References.- Macroscopic and mesophysics together: the moving contact line problem revisited. References.- Nanoscale effects in mesoscopic films. 1. Hydrodynamic equations. 2. Thermodynamic equations. 3. Fluid-substrate Interactions. 4. Dynamic contact line. 5. Mobility relations. References.- Dynamics of thermal polymerization waves. 1. Introduction. 2. Mathematical model. 3. Gasless combustion. 4. Analysis of base FP model. 5. Other thermal FP studies. 6. Conclusion. References.- Self-organization of microtubules and motors. 1. Maxwell model and orientational instability. 2. Spatial localization. 3. Aster and vortex solutions. 4. Conclusion. Acknowledgements. References.- Physics of DNA. 1. Introduction. 2. Major structures of DNA. 3. DNA functioning. 4. Global DNA conformation. 5. The DNA stability. 6. Conclusion. References. Topic index.