HIGHLIGHT

Self-Assembled Organic Nanotubes:

Toward Attoliter Chemistry

TOSHIMI SHIMIZU

Nanoarchitectonics Research Center(NARC),National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology(AIST),Tsukuba,Ibaraki305-8565,Japan

Received16January2008;accepted25January2008

DOI:10.1002/pola.22652

Published online in Wiley InterScience(http://www.doczj.com/doc/f2f27a46b307e87101f696d2.html).

ABSTRACT:Diverse chemi-cal functionalization of the inner and outer surfaces of the nano-tubes enables us to sense and vis-ualize the encapsulation and transport behavior of biomacro-molecular guests.The event occurs speci?cally in attoliter volume nanospace inside the hol-low cylinder of the nanotubes. Comparison of the organic nano-tube history with that of well-known carbon nanotubes and a

variety of molecular building

blocks as tube-forming com-

pounds were?rst introduced.

Asymmetric organic nanotubes

with different inner and outer sur-

faces were discussed in terms of

molecular design,immobilization

of functional moieties,and molec-

ular packing.Finally,the practical

examples of the organic nano-

tubes as a nanocontainer,nano-

channel,and nanopipette were

also described to feature the con-

cept of‘‘attoliter chemistry.’’

V C2008Wiley Periodicals,Inc.J Polym

Sci Part A:Polym Chem46:2601–2611,

2008

Keywords:attoliter chemistry;

hollow cylinder;host-guest sys-

tems;nanotechnology;self-assem-

bly

Toshimi Shimizu is currently the director of Nanoarchitectonics Research Center(NARC),National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology(AIST)in Tsukuba,Japan.He received his B.S.and M.S.degrees in polymer chemistry from Kyoto University, Japan,in1975and1977,respectively,and obtained his Ph.D.degree from Kyoto University,Japan,in1983.In1977,he joined the Research Institute of Polymers and Textiles,Agency of Industrial Sci-ence and Technology(AIST),Ministry of International Trade and Industry(MITI),Japan.After his postdoctoral research at Free Univer-sity Berlin with Prof.J.-H.Fuhrhop,he joined the National Institute

of TOSHIMI SHIMIZU

Correspondence to:T.Shimizu(E-mail:tshmz-shimizu@

aist.go.jp)

Journal of Polymer Science:Part A:Polymer Chemistry,Vol.46,2601–2611(2008)

2601