NANOCRYSTAL MICROEMULSIONS - SURFACTANT-STABILIZED SIZE AND SHAPE

We formulate an analogy between thermodynamically stable water/oil mic roemulsions and surfactant-stabilized nanocrystal dispersions, with th e goal of accounting for how specific sizes and shapes of nanocrystals might become dominant in equilibrated solutions of, for example, alka li halides or semiconductors in organic solvents. Qualitative estimate s of the energetics-i.e., of the dependence of lattice energy on cryst al dimensions-suggest that the size and shape distributions can be qui te narrow, with their average properties controlled primarily by the s olution composition, in particular the ratio of surfactant to crystall ine species.