Abstract
We experimentally investigate the equilibrium gel formation in a binary mixture of DNA nanostars. The binding rules, encoded in the DNA sequence of the nanostar binding ends, are such that each component is able to form only intra-species bonds. Reducing the excluded volume by properly designing the DNA nanostars, we show that two interpenetrating unconnected gels form in the sample on cooling, each of the two forming at a temperature controlled by the selected binding DNA sequence. The dynamic light scattering correlation functions show a non-common three-step relaxation process, due to the splitting of the slow relaxation into two distinct decays, each of them reflecting the relaxation dynamics of one of the two networks.
Enrico Lattuada
Postdoctoral Researcher
Investigating the structure and dynamics of colloidal systems using optical techniques.