Small-scale structures in biomineralisation and biomimetic materials chemistry

The study of biomineralisation and the biomimetic synthesis of inorganic materials with small-scale structures is a continuing area of growth because of the demand for inorganic colloids with ever decreasing particle sizes, complex morphological shape, hybrid structure and superlattice organisation. Some of the continuing advances are taking place at the interface between bio-inorganic and materials chemistry, with the focus on structures from single-celled biological systems that have dimensions from the supramolecular to those generally less than,a few micrometres in size.