College of Engineering

Profile Summary

The design and engineering of organic interfaces is a critical element of many technologies that are emerging from fundamental advances in the life sciences, nano-scale materials sciences and information sciences. Our research bridges this broad range of disciplines through an interdisciplinary program of fundamental and discovery-oriented research. Our research is focused on the engineering of molecules and their organized assemblies. These molecules can be of biological origin (proteins or DNA) or synthetic (a polymer prepared by using living polymerization). We use statistical thermodynamics and atomistic simulations to understand and guide the design of new molecules. We synthesize new molecules using organic and polymer chemistry, and explore the properties of materials that result from their organization near interfaces. We collaborate extensively with researchers from the life sciences (virology, molecular biochemistry, veterinary medicine) and well as physical sciences (physics and chemistry). Some of our collaborators are located in universities and others are based on industry.

One part of our research is focused on the development of principles for active control of surfactant systems. Here we are exploring a variety of molecular-level "switches" that permit the properties of solutions of surfactants (detergent-like molecules) solutions to be tuned in situ. We have designed molecular switches that can be triggered by chemical, electrochemical and photophysical processes. Thus we can cycle the properties of surfactant-containing systems and drive spatially localized processes. These capabilities are new, and may find use in biotechnology, micro-scale separations, and novel coating processes. Other aspects of our research are directed towards demonstrations of new methods for the synthesis and processing of ultra-thin polymers at surface. We have demonstrated a new approach to the patterning of polymers on surfaces and to transfer of the patterns into underlying substrates. This work was performed through a collaboration with several polymer chemists at IBM in California.

A second broad area under investigation in our laboratory deals with the fabrication of surfaces with nanometer-scale topography and well-defined surface chemistry. We are broadly interested in the interactions of biological species (proteins, DNA and viruses) as well as synthetic liquid crystals with these nanostructured surfaces. Liquid crystals, which are complex states of matter that blend properties of crystalline solids and liquids, are ubiquitous in biology and the man-made world (such as computer displays). We seek to understand the fundamental relationship between the nanometer-scale structures of surfaces and the orientations of liquid crystals placed on these surfaces. This problem is a formidable one, largely because the balance of forces that controls the orientations of liquid crystals at surfaces is remarkably precarious. This surface-sensitivity, which has frustrated past attempts to orient liquid crystals in optical devices, can, we believe, be exploited to form the basis of a general methodology to image biological interactions on nanostructured surfaces. We believe these principles might form the basis of immunological assays or methods to screen spatially resolved chemical libraries.

We have also recently demonstrated that liquid crystals can form the basis of sensors for low molecular weight chemicals such as pesticides. These sensors are compact (about the size of a quarter), do not require electrical power, and might be useful for measurements of personal exposure to chemical environments (e.g., pesticides).

One of the challenges that unifies the research described above is that of understanding intermolecular forces in systems that contain large interfacial areas. In several of our projects, we are exploring new approaches to the design of intermolecular forces in interfacial systems and well as developing an understanding of the role of intermolecular forces in some classical systems.

Profile Summary

The design and engineering of organic interfaces is a critical element of many technologies that are emerging from fundamental advances in the life sciences, nano-scale materials sciences and information sciences. Our research bridges this broad range of disciplines through an interdisciplinary program of fundamental and discovery-oriented research. Our research is focused on the engineering of molecules and their organized assemblies. These molecules can be of biological origin (proteins or DNA) or synthetic (a polymer prepared by using living polymerization). We use statistical thermodynamics and atomistic simulations to understand and guide the design of new molecules. We synthesize new molecules using organic and polymer chemistry, and explore the properties of materials that result from their organization near interfaces. We collaborate extensively with researchers from the life sciences (virology, molecular biochemistry, veterinary medicine) and well as physical sciences (physics and chemistry). Some of our collaborators are located in universities and others are based on industry.

One part of our research is focused on the development of principles for active control of surfactant systems. Here we are exploring a variety of molecular-level "switches" that permit the properties of solutions of surfactants (detergent-like molecules) solutions to be tuned in situ. We have designed molecular switches that can be triggered by chemical, electrochemical and photophysical processes. Thus we can cycle the properties of surfactant-containing systems and drive spatially localized processes. These capabilities are new, and may find use in biotechnology, micro-scale separations, and novel coating processes. Other aspects of our research are directed towards demonstrations of new methods for the synthesis and processing of ultra-thin polymers at surface. We have demonstrated a new approach to the patterning of polymers on surfaces and to transfer of the patterns into underlying substrates. This work was performed through a collaboration with several polymer chemists at IBM in California.

A second broad area under investigation in our laboratory deals with the fabrication of surfaces with nanometer-scale topography and well-defined surface chemistry. We are broadly interested in the interactions of biological species (proteins, DNA and viruses) as well as synthetic liquid crystals with these nanostructured surfaces. Liquid crystals, which are complex states of matter that blend properties of crystalline solids and liquids, are ubiquitous in biology and the man-made world (such as computer displays). We seek to understand the fundamental relationship between the nanometer-scale structures of surfaces and the orientations of liquid crystals placed on these surfaces. This problem is a formidable one, largely because the balance of forces that controls the orientations of liquid crystals at surfaces is remarkably precarious. This surface-sensitivity, which has frustrated past attempts to orient liquid crystals in optical devices, can, we believe, be exploited to form the basis of a general methodology to image biological interactions on nanostructured surfaces. We believe these principles might form the basis of immunological assays or methods to screen spatially resolved chemical libraries.

We have also recently demonstrated that liquid crystals can form the basis of sensors for low molecular weight chemicals such as pesticides. These sensors are compact (about the size of a quarter), do not require electrical power, and might be useful for measurements of personal exposure to chemical environments (e.g., pesticides).

One of the challenges that unifies the research described above is that of understanding intermolecular forces in systems that contain large interfacial areas. In several of our projects, we are exploring new approaches to the design of intermolecular forces in interfacial systems and well as developing an understanding of the role of intermolecular forces in some classical systems.

Education

• Postdoc., Chemistry, Harvard University (1993)
• PhD, Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1991)
• B Eng (Chemical), University of Adelaide, Australia (1986)

Research Interests

• interfacial phenomena
• colloid chemistry
• soft materials
• biotechnology
• nano-scale science and engineering
• polymers, liquid crystals and surfactant

Awards, Honors and Societies

• Amundson Lecture,  Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Minnesota (2013)
• Alpha Chi Sigma Award of AIChE for Chemical Engineering Research (2012)
• Jeanne and Martin Sussman Lectureship, Tufts University (2012)
• Plenary Lecture, International Conference on Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (Perth, Australia) (2012)
• 2011 Kurt Wohl Memorial Lecture, University of Delaware (2012)
• Plenary Lecture, 11th European Conference on Liquid Crystals (Slovenia) (2011)
• Vilas Associate, University of Wisconsin-Madison
• AAAS Fellow
• Technology Achievement Award, MIT Club of Wisconsin for Platypus Technologies LLC (2010)
• Charles M.A. Stine Award (AIChE) (2010)
• Guest Professor, Department of Materials, Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (ETH), Zürich (2005 - 2006)
• Kellett Mid-Career Award of University of Wisconsin (2004)
• Lectureship Award of Japan Research Institute of Materials Technology (2003)
• Van Ness Lectures of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (2002)
• Robert W. Vaughan Lectureship in Chemical Engineering at California Institute of Technology (2001)
• John T. Sobota and Magdalen L. Sobota Chair in Chemical Engineering (2001)
• Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award (1998)
• ONR Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) (1997)
• NSF CAREER Award (1995)
• David and Lucile Packard Fellowship in Science and Engineering (1994)
• Camille and Henry Dreyfus New Faculty Award (1992)

Publications

•  Bai, Y.; Abbott, N.L.; “Enantiomeric Interactions between Liquid Crystals and Organized Monolayers of Tyrosine-Containing Dipeptides”, Journal of American Chemical Society, 134(1), 548-558, 2012.
•  Abras, D.; Pranami, G.; Abbott, N.L., “The Mobilities of Micro- and Nano-Particles at Interfaces of Nematic Liquid Crystals\", Soft Matter, 8, 2026-2035, 2012.
• Carlton, Rebecca J.; Ma, C. Derek; Gupta, Jugal K.; Abbott, N.L., “Influence of Specific Anions on the Orientational Ordering of Thermotropic Liquid Crystals at Aqueous Interfaces”, Langmuir 28(35), 12796-12805, 2012.
• Muller, J. P. E.; Aytar, B. S.; Kondo, Y.; Lynn, D. M.; Abbott, N. L., “Incorporation of DOPE into lipoplexes formed from a ferrocenyl lipid leads to inverse hexagonal nanostructures that allow redox-based control of transfection in high serum.” Soft Matter 8(24), 6608-6619, 2012.
• Lin, I-H.; Miller, D.S.; Bertics, P.J.; Murphy, C.J.; de Pablo, J.J.; Abbott, N.L.; “Endotoxin-Induced Structural Transformations in Liquid Crystalline Droplets”, Science, 332(6035), 1297-1300, 2011.
• Bai, Y.; Abbott, N.L.; “Recent Advances in Colloidal and Interfacial Phenomena Involving Liquid Crystals”, Langmuir, 27(10), 5719-5738, 2011.
• Liu, X; Abbott, N.L. “Lateral Transport of Solutes in Microfluidic Channels using Electrochemically Generated Gradients in Redox-Active Surfactants”, Analytical Chemistry, 83(8), 3033-3041, 2011.
• Acevedo-Vélez;, C.; Andre, G.; Dufrene, Y.; Gellman, S.; Abbott, N.L., “Single Molecule Force Spectroscopy of ß-Peptides that Display Well-Defined Three-Dimensional Chemical Nanopatterns”, Journal of American Chemical Society, 133(11), 3981-3988, 2011.
• Liu, X.; Abbott, N.L, “Characterization of the Nanostructure of Complexes Formed by Single- or Double-Stranded Oligonucleotides with a Cationic Surfactant”, J. Phys. Chem. B, 114 (47), 15554-15564, 2010.
• Kinsinger, MI; Lynn, DM; Abbott, NL “Nematic Ordering Drives the Phase Separation of Mixed Monolayers Containing Phospholipids Modified with Poly(ethylene glycol) at Aqueous-Liquid Crystal Interfaces” Soft Matter, 6(17), 4095-4104, 2010.
• Koenig, GM; Lin, IH; Abbott, NL “Chemoresponsive Assemblies of Microparticles at Liquid Crystalline Interfaces”, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107 (9), 3998-4003, 2010.
• Ankit Agarwal, Tahlia L. Weis, Michael J. Schurr, Nancy G. Faith, Charles J. Czuprynski, Jonathan F. McAnulty, Christopher J. Murphy, and Nicholas L. Abbott, “Surfaces Modified with Nanometer-Thick Silver-Impregnated Polymeric Films that Kill Bacteria but Support Growth of Mammalian Cells”, Biomaterials, 31(4), 680-690, 2010.
• Koenig GM, Ong R, Cortes AD, Moreno-Razo JA, de Pablo JJ, Abbott NL., Single Nanoparticle Tracking Reveals Influence of Chemical Functionality of Nanoparticles on Local Ordering of Liquid Crystals and Nanoparticle Diffusion Coefficients, Nanoletters, 9(7), 2794-2801, 2009.
• Liu, XY; Abbott, NL “Electrochemical Generation of Gradients in Surfactant Concentration Across Microfluidic Channels”, Analytical Chemistry, 81 (2), 772-781, 2009.
• Gupta, JK; Abbott, NL “Principles for Manipulation of the Lateral Organization of Aqueous-Soluble Surface-Active Molecules at the Liquid Crystal-Aqueous Interface” Langmuir, 25 (4), 2026-2033, 2009.
• Lowe, A.M., P.J. Bertics, and N.L. Abbott, “Quantitative Methods Based on Twisted Nematic Liquid Crystals for Mapping Surfaces Patterned with Bio/Chemical Functionality Relevant to Bioanalytical Assays”, Analytical Chemistry, 80(8), 2637-2645, 2008.
• Meli, Victoria, Lin, I.-H, and Nicholas L. Abbott, “Preparation of Microscopic and Planar Oil-Water Interfaces that are Decorated with Prescribed Densities of Insoluble Amphiphiles”, Journal of American Chemical Society, 130(13), 4326-4333, 2008.
• Claire L. Pizzey, Christopher M. Jewell, Melissa E. Hays, David M. Lynn and Nicholas L. Abbott, Yukishige Kondo, Sharon Golan and Yeshayahu Talmon, “Characterization of the Nanostructure of Complexes Formed by a Redox-Active Cationic Lipid and DNA”, Journal of Physical Chemistry B, in press 2008.
• Jugal K Gupta, Maria-Victoria Meli, Sarah Teren, and Nicholas L Abbott, “Elastic Energy-Driven Phase Separation of Phospholipid Monolayers at the Nematic Liquid Crystal-Aqueous Interface”, Physical Review Letters, 100, 048301-, 2008.
• Melissa E. Hays, Christopher M. Jewell, Yukishige Kondo, David M. Lynn, and Nicholas L. Abbott, “Lipoplexes Formed by DNA and Ferrocenyl Lipids: Effect of Lipid Oxidation State on Size, Internal Dynamics and Zeta-Potential”, Biophysical Journal, 93, 4414-4424, 2007.
• Govindaraju T, Bertics PJ, Raines RT, Abbott, N.L., “Using Measurements of Anchoring Energies of Liquid Crystals on Surfaces to Quantify Proteins Captured by Immobilized Ligands”, Journal of the American Chemical Society, 129 (36): 11223-11231, 2007.
• Liu XY, Graham MD, Abbott NL, “Methods for Generation of Spatial Gradients in Concentration of Monomeric Surfactants and Micelles in Microfluidic Systems”, Langmuir23 (19): 9578-9585, 2007.
• Jang, C.-H.; Cheng, L.-L.; Olsen, C. W.; Abbott, N. L. “Anchoring of Nematic Liquid Crystals on Viruses with Different Envelope Structures” NanoLetters, 6; 1053-1058, 2006.
• Nathan A. Lockwood, Jeffrey C. Mohr, Lin Ji, Christopher J. Murphy, Sean P. Palecek, Juan J. de Pablo, and Nicholas L. Abbott,  “Thermotropic Liquid Crystals as Substrates for Imaging the Reorganization of Matrigel by Human Embryonic Stem Cells”, Advanced Functional Materials, 16,  618-624, 2006.
• Nathan A. Lockwood, Katie D. Cadwell, Frank Caruso, and Nicholas L. Abbott, “Formation of Polyelectrolyte Multilayer Films at Interfaces Between Thermotropic Liquid Crystals and Aqueous Phases”, Advanced Materials, 18: 850-855, 2006.
• Abbott NL, Jewell CM, Hays ME, Kondo Y, Lynn DM, “Ferrocene-Containing Cationic Lipids: Influence of Redox State on Cell Transfection”, Journal of American Chemical Society, 127 (33) 11576-11577, 2005.
• Clare BH, Abbott NL  “Orientations of Nematic Liquid Crystals on Surfaces Presenting Controlled Densities of Peptides: Amplification of Protein-Peptide Binding Events”, Langmuir, 21 (14): 6451-6461, 2005.
• Brake, Jeffrey; Daschner, Maren; Abbott, Nicholas L. “Biomolecular Interactions at Phospholipid-Decorated Surfaces of Thermotropic Liquid Crystals”, Science, 302, 2094-2098, 2003.
• Luk, Yan-Yeung; Abbott, Nicholas L.  “Surface-Driven Switching of Liquid Crystals using Redox- Active Groups on Electrodes”,  Science, 301(5633), 623-626, 2003.
• Shah, R.; Abbott, N.L., “Principles for Measurement of Chemical Exposure based on Recognition-Driven Anchoring Transitions in Liquid Crystals, Science, 293, 1296-1299, 2001.
• Gu YD, Abbott NL, “Observation of Saturn-Ring Defects around Solid Microspheres in Nematic Liquid Crystals”, Physical Review Letters, 85, 4719-4722, 2000.
• Gallardo, B.S.; Gupta, V.K.; Jong, L.I.; Shah, R.; Eagerton, F.D.; Abbott, N.L., \"Electrochemical Principles for Active Control of Liquids on Submillimeter Scales\", Science, 283, 57-60, 1999.
• Gupta, V.K.; Dubrovsky, T.B.; Abbott, N.L., \"Optical Amplification of Ligand-Receptor Binding Using Liquid Crystals\", Science, 279, 2077-2080, 1998.
• Gupta, V.K.; Abbott, N.L., \"Design of Surfaces for Patterned Alignment of Liquid Crystals on Planar and Curved Substrates\", Science, 276, 1533-1536, 1997,

Courses

CBE 211: Chemical Process Thermodynamics
CBE 311: Thermodynamics of Mixtures
CBE 324: Transport Phenomena Laboratory
CBE 326: Momentum and Heat Transfer Operations
CBE 547: Introduction to Colloid and Interface Science
CBE 710: Advanced Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics
CBE 747: Advanced Colloid and Interface Science

Profile Summary

The design and engineering of organic interfaces is a critical element of many technologies that are emerging from fundamental advances in the life sciences, nano-scale materials sciences and information sciences. Our research bridges this broad range of disciplines through an interdisciplinary program of fundamental and discovery-oriented research. Our research is focused on the engineering of molecules and their organized assemblies. These molecules can be of biological origin (proteins or DNA) or synthetic (a polymer prepared by using living polymerization). We use statistical thermodynamics and atomistic simulations to understand and guide the design of new molecules. We synthesize new molecules using organic and polymer chemistry, and explore the properties of materials that result from their organization near interfaces. We collaborate extensively with researchers from the life sciences (virology, molecular biochemistry, veterinary medicine) and well as physical sciences (physics and chemistry). Some of our collaborators are located in universities and others are based on industry.

One part of our research is focused on the development of principles for active control of surfactant systems. Here we are exploring a variety of molecular-level "switches" that permit the properties of solutions of surfactants (detergent-like molecules) solutions to be tuned in situ. We have designed molecular switches that can be triggered by chemical, electrochemical and photophysical processes. Thus we can cycle the properties of surfactant-containing systems and drive spatially localized processes. These capabilities are new, and may find use in biotechnology, micro-scale separations, and novel coating processes. Other aspects of our research are directed towards demonstrations of new methods for the synthesis and processing of ultra-thin polymers at surface. We have demonstrated a new approach to the patterning of polymers on surfaces and to transfer of the patterns into underlying substrates. This work was performed through a collaboration with several polymer chemists at IBM in California.

A second broad area under investigation in our laboratory deals with the fabrication of surfaces with nanometer-scale topography and well-defined surface chemistry. We are broadly interested in the interactions of biological species (proteins, DNA and viruses) as well as synthetic liquid crystals with these nanostructured surfaces. Liquid crystals, which are complex states of matter that blend properties of crystalline solids and liquids, are ubiquitous in biology and the man-made world (such as computer displays). We seek to understand the fundamental relationship between the nanometer-scale structures of surfaces and the orientations of liquid crystals placed on these surfaces. This problem is a formidable one, largely because the balance of forces that controls the orientations of liquid crystals at surfaces is remarkably precarious. This surface-sensitivity, which has frustrated past attempts to orient liquid crystals in optical devices, can, we believe, be exploited to form the basis of a general methodology to image biological interactions on nanostructured surfaces. We believe these principles might form the basis of immunological assays or methods to screen spatially resolved chemical libraries.

We have also recently demonstrated that liquid crystals can form the basis of sensors for low molecular weight chemicals such as pesticides. These sensors are compact (about the size of a quarter), do not require electrical power, and might be useful for measurements of personal exposure to chemical environments (e.g., pesticides).

One of the challenges that unifies the research described above is that of understanding intermolecular forces in systems that contain large interfacial areas. In several of our projects, we are exploring new approaches to the design of intermolecular forces in interfacial systems and well as developing an understanding of the role of intermolecular forces in some classical systems.