Simple Preparation of Sophisticated Multiresponsive Core‐Crystalline Micelles via an Approach Reminiscent of the Division of Labor in Microorganisms

Abstract

Division of labor, where two identical cells differentiate to carry out distinctive function, represents a major development in evolution. Despite obvious advantages, such behavior remains elusive in supramolecular assembly, due to the difficulty to force a population of identical building blocks to spontaneously split and perform different tasks as they assemble. Here, this differentiation is achieved using a crystallization‐driven self‐assembly approach. A seeded growth on a suspension of aggregated seed crystallites is performed and nanoflower‐like mesostructures with 3D central sections surrounded by rays of 2D petals are prepared. This morphological divergence brings remarkably distinct responses to specific stimuli: high‐temperature annealing induces the formation of hollow petals, while, astonishingly, a simple solvent transfer leads to the perforation of their thick central sections, without affecting their overall morphological integrity. This work demonstrates how an artificial division of labor can be promoted to fabricate highly complex structures via supramolecular self‐assembly.

Keywords

• block copolymers
• living crystallizations
• nanostructures
• self-assemblies