Chemistry of Functional Materials: Surfaces and Interfaces — Fundamentals and Applications

Modern materials science is governed not only by what materials are made of, but by what happens at their boundaries. Every object in the three-dimensional world is defined by interfaces—between solid and liquid, liquid and gas, or between different materials. These interfaces control adhesion, wetting, self-assembly, electron transfer, and ultimately the performance of technologies ranging from self-cleaning surfaces and smart-phone coatings to oil recovery and semiconductor manufacturing.

The book presents a unified and intuitive framework for understanding these phenomena across length scales—from molecular surfactants to nanoparticles and macroscopic functional surfaces. A central idea is that amphiphilicity is a scalable concept: it applies not only to molecules, but also to polymers, nanoparticles, and micro-objects. The text guides the reader from fundamental energy concepts and interfacial thermodynamics to colloids, polymer nanoparticles, Pickering emulsions, metal–organic interfaces, and photolithography, with case studies from nanotechnology, polymer science, electronics, and industry.

Honciuc, Andrei. Chemistry of Functional Materials: Surfaces and Interfaces—Fundamentals and Applications; Elsevier: Amsterdam, 2021; 280 pp.
View on ScienceDirect

Morphological Design and Synthesis of Nanoparticles

Nanoparticles occupy a unique domain of matter, where size, shape, and surface structure determine physical, chemical, and biological behavior. This edited volume brings together recent contributions that highlight the central role of nanoparticle morphology in defining functionality: shape is not merely a geometric attribute, but a design parameter that controls how nanoparticles interact with their environment, assemble into structures, and perform specific technological tasks.

Contributions span synthetic strategies for uniquely shaped nanostructures, Janus and asymmetric particles, biomedical and luminescent nanoparticles, nanoalloys, magnetic nanostructures, catalysis, and environmental applications, emphasizing the structure–property–function relationship.

Honciuc, Andrei; Honciuc, Mirela, Eds. Morphological Design and Synthesis of Nanoparticles; MDPI: Basel, 2024; 338 pp.
View the book at MDPI