Topic: Materials Synthesis of Complex Structures

Biological systems are characterised by remarkable structures, perfectly optimised for their function. Characteristically organised from the nanometer to the micrometer length scale, the hierarchical structuring of materials such as bone generates engineering materials with exceptional mechanical properties.  Precise, periodic design is also a pre-requisite to photonic structures as diverse as butterfly wings and the microlens arrays of brittle stars.  This symposium will examine the structure-function relationships of biological materials, and use these systems as the inspiration for the development of new materials.  Study of biomineralisation processes offers valuable insights into how mineralisation can be controlled under ambient conditions and has prompted a range of studies using biomimetic routes to control the synthesis of inorganic solids.  Profiting from existing biological structures as templates, or direct mimicking of clever biological structures provide alternative routes to developing bio-inspired advanced materials.

Topics of interests in this symposium include:

• Lessons from nature - biomineralisation mechanisms and structures
  
• Optical, structural and mechanical properties of biological materials
  
• Characterisation of biomaterials
  
• Mineralisation directed by biological or synthetic polymers
  
• Bio-inspired materials design and synthesis
  
• Templated mineralisation
  
• Computer modelling of polymer controlled mineralization   

Session: Materials Synthesis of Complex Structures (i) - Monday 2 July (am)

Session Chair
Andrew Parker
The Natural History Museum

Keynote: Hierarchical structure and mechanical function of biological materials
Peter Fratzl 
Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Germany

The diversity and assembly of photonic nanostructures in nature 
Andrew Parker
The Natural History Museum, UK

The use of Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction for analysing nanocomposites and biomaterials
S J Eichhorn*, D J Scurr and A Sturcova
University of Manchester, UK

Spider silk as an archetypal protein elastomer
David Porter* and Fritz Vollrath
QinetiQ Ltd, UK

Modelling calcite crystallization on organic monolayer 
Dorothy Duffy*, Colin Freeman and John Harding
University College London, UK

Apatite-gelatine- and calcite-gelatine-nanocomposites: development of bio-related hierarchical structures
Rüdiger Kniep*
Max-Planck-Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Germany

Session: Materials Synthesis of Complex Structures (ii) - Tuesday 3 July (pm)

Session chair
Rüdiger Kniep
Max-Planck-Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Germany

Keynote:  Bionanotechnology approach in material synthesis and device fabrication by applying peptide/protein assemblies
Hiroshi Matsui 
Hunter College - City University of New York, USA

Surface modification of calcium phosphate nanoparticles and their application for gene transfer
Viktoriya Sokolova, Anna Kovtun, Oleg Prymak, Wolfgang Meyer-Zaika, Elena A Kubareva, Elena A Romanova, Tatiana S Oretskaya, Rolf Heumann and Matthias Epple*
Universitaet Duisburg-Essen, Germany

Ultrasonic nebulizer assisted routes to formation of ceramic structures
D Walsh*, L Arcelli, B Palazzo, Vicky Swinerd, Jane Fletcher and Stephen Mann
University of Bristol, UK

Nanoengineered multifunctional polymer-based capsules: microreactors for (bio)-chemical reactions, sensing and delivery systems
Gleb B. Sukhorukov*
Queen Mary University of London, UK

Bio-Inspired polymer-inorganic hybrid materials
Ullrich Steiner*, Sabine Ludwigs and Fiona Meldrum
University of Cambridge, UK

Breaking the mould: changing the face of crystal growth
NBJ Hetherington*, A N Kulak and F C Meldrum
University of Bristol, UK

Confinement effects in biosilicification mimetic studies
Thibaud Coradin*, Clémentine Gautier, Pascal J Lopez and Jacques Livage
Chimie de la Matière Condensée de Paris, France

Self-Assembly and mineralization of artificial spicules of marine sponges
M N Tahir, I Shukoor, N Loges, F Natalio, H C Schröder, M Schmidt, W E G Müller and W Tremel*
Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Germany