The ZIF-8 is composed of zinc cations and organic imidazolate-based linkers. The topology of the framework is analogous to sodalite – a well-known zeolite.

Image: This illustration of a metal-organic framework, or MOF, shows the metal center bound to organic molecules. Each MOF has a specific framework determined by the choice of metal and organic. © ANL

http://www.anl.gov/

Scientists have created new kinds of particles, 1/100th the diameter of a human hair, that spontaneously assemble themselves into structures resembling molecules made from atoms. These new particles come together, or “self-assemble,” to form structures in patterns that were previously impossible to make and hold promise for manufacturing advanced optical materials and ceramics. The method was developed by a team of chemists, chemical engineers, and physicists at New York University (NYU), the Harvard School of Engineering & Applied Sciences, the Harvard Department of Physics, and Dow Chemical Company.

Yufeng Wang, Yu Wang, Dana R. Breed, Vinothan N. Manoharan, Lang Feng, Andrew D. Hollingsworth, Marcus Weckm, David J. Pine: Colloids with valence and spe- cific directional bonding, In: Nature, Vol. 491, Number 7422, November 01, 2012, Pages 51-55 http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature11564

Illustration © Pengcheng Song, Yufeng Wang, and Yu Wang