One important technological goal in the synthesis of materials is to control over the assembly of building blocks from atomic to nanometer scales, directed towards fine-tuning the properties of the bulk material. We propose to attack this problem through the synthesis of well defined building blocks to be used potentially in the synthesis of materials. Our aims are: (i) to develop new methodologies for inorganic synthesis, (ii) to synthesize, isolate, and characterize novel inorganic building blocks (iii) and the rational assembly of these building blocks to engineer new materials. This, we believe, provides an unmatched strategy to control the entire fabrication process: from the selection of molecular precursors for controlled assembly of nanostructures to the conversion of inactive building blocks into a ‘suit-to-purpose’ material.
