writer：Naibo Lin, Zhaohui Meng, Guoyang William Toh, Yang Zhen, Yingying Dao, Hongyao Xu*, Xiang Yang Liu*
keywords：silk
source：期刊
specific source：Small, 2015, 11 (9-10): 1205-14
Issue time：2015年

This novel materials assembly technology endows the designated materials with additional/enhanced performance by fi xing “functional components” into the materials. Such functional components are molecularly recognized and accommodated by the designated materials. In this regard, two-photon fluorescence (TPF) organic molecules and CdTe quantum dots (QDs) are adopted as functional components to functionalize silk fi bers and fi lms. TPF organic molecules, such as, 2,7-bis[2-(4-nitrophenyl) ethenyl]-9,9-dibutylfl uorene ( NM ), exhibit TPF emission quenching because of the molecular stacking that leads to aggregation in the solid form. The specific recognition between -NO2 in the annealed fl uorescent molecules and the -NH groups in the silk fibroin molecules decouples the aggregated molecules. This gives rise to a signifi cant increase in the TPF quantum yields of the silk fibers. Similarly, as another type of functional components , CdTe quantum dots (QDs) with different sizes were also adopted in the silk functionalization method. Compared to QDs in solution the fl uorescence properties of functionalized silk materials display a long stability at room temperature. As the functional materials are well dispersed at high quantum yields in the biocompatible silk a TPF microscope can be used to pursue 3D high-resolution imaging in real time of the TPF–silk scaffold.