A SIMPLE method for creating exotic microscopic scaffolds has emerged from an unlikely source: pollen grains.
Although they are only a few tens of micrometres across, pollen grains form beautiful and intricate shapes with a complex structure and huge surface area. Chemists can exploit these properties to trap molecules so that complex reactions can take place.
The new technique involves making a cast of the grains. Researchers at the University of Bristol, UK, coat the grains with a layer of silica, calcium carbonate or calcium phosphate by suspending them in a supersaturated solution of either silicic acid, sodium carbonate or…
