Call for Papers

Please contact the symposium organizers with questions.

This symposium will cover a broad of topics about building advanced materials using aggregation or self-assembly techniques, both experimental and theoretical. Aggregation and self-assembly play crucial roles in the natural formation of minerals and have become increasingly important in the fabrication of advanced materials at both laboratory and industrial scales. Over time, numerous materials synthesized via these methods have found applications in fields such as biomedicine, energy, environment, catalysis, and optics. For instance, interconnected nanoparticle superlattices fabricated through self-assembly of Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles have been utilized as anodes to enhance lithium-ion battery performance, while advanced luminescent materials have been created through aggregation-induced emission (AIE) of intrinsically non-emissive molecules. However, one of the major challenges facing this rapidly expanding field is the development of a fundamental understanding of aggregation and self-assembly mechanisms, which will be a key focus of the symposium. Contributions to the event will encompass a wide array of topics, including but not limited to: 1) Recent advances in the synthesis of advanced materials using aggregation or self-assembly methods; 2) Investigations into the mechanisms underlying aggregation and self-assembly processes; 3) Observation of these processes via in situ techniques; 4) Theoretical developments on particle-based crystallization; and 5) Materials with AIE and their practical applications. This symposium will provide researchers with updated information on aggregation and self-assembly research. The symposium has also been designed to help experienced researchers deepen their knowledge on the development of new techniques, particularly state-of-the-art in situ characterization tools that can aid in understanding aggregation and self-assembly mechanisms.

Topics will include:

• Building advanced materials via cluster, biomaterials or particle aggregation and/or self-assembly
• Mechanism studies of aggregation or self-assembly pathways
• Control of morphology and size during the synthesis of advanced materials via aggregation and/or self-assembly pathways
• Driving forces for particle interactions
• Fluorescent and phosphorescent AIE-based polymers, oligomers, and molecules
• Design principles and operational mechanisms of the AIE-based molecules
• Biocompatible AIE probes for sensing, imaging, and other biomedical applications
• Applications of these advanced materials in areas of energy, environment, biomedicine, etc.

• A tutorial complementing this symposium is tentatively planned.

Invited Speakers:

• Lluis Blancafort (Universitat de Girona, Spain)
• James De Yoreo (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, USA)
• Julia Dshemuchadse (Cornell University, USA)
• Hongyou Fan (Sandia National Laboratories, USA)
• Kristen Fichthorn (The Pennsylvania State University, USA)
• Oleg Gang (Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA)
• Pupa Gilbert (University of Wisconsin–Madison, USA)
• Yuning Hong (La Trobe University, Australia)
• Rongrong Hu (South China University of Technology, China)
• Cherie Kagan (University of Pennsylvania, USA)
• Nicholas Kotov (University of Michigan, USA)
• Eugenia Kumacheva (University of Toronto, Canada)
• Dongsheng Li (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, USA)
• Xiaoding Lou (China University of Geoscience, China)
• Chad Mirkin (Northwestern University, USA)
• Jungwon Park (Seoul National University, Republic of Korea)
• Qian Peng (University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, China)
• Kanyi Pu (Nanyang Technological University, Singapore)
• Andrea Pucci (Università di Pisa, Italy)
• Eric Rivard (University of Alberta, Canada)
• Dmitri Talapin (The University of Chicago, USA)
• Ben Zhong Tang (Chinese University of Hong Kong, China)
• Wei Tao (Harvard University, USA)
• Dong Wang (Shenzhen University, China)
• Xingchen Ye (Indiana University Bloomington, USA)
• Ali K. Yetisen (Imperial College London, United Kingdom)
• Haoke Zhang (Zhejiang University, China)
• Y. Shrike Zhang (Harvard University, USA)
• Haimei Zheng (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, USA)
• Minjiang Zhong (Yale University, USA)

Symposium Organizers