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Research Interests

Biomedical engineering, soft materials, self-assembly, molecular nanotechnology, microfluidics

The Emergent Nanomaterials Lab manipulates matter on the smallest of scales to create materials with emergent properties, characterized by novel and sometimes surprising features arising from the interactions of multiple bodies. By synthesizing, assembling, combining and organizing nanoscale building blocks, we design materials with unusual and potential advantageous properties, such as (i) "tech tattoo" inks that impart the skin with new functions, (ii) "slide-ring" gels, elastomers, and glasses with extreme toughness and flexibility, and (iii) nano- and microscopic machines powered by alternative energy sources. 

Selected Publications

• CJ Bruns, JF Stoddart, The Nature of the Mechanical Bond: From Molecules to Machines. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2016. 761 pp. ISBN: 9781119044000
• CJ Bruns, H Liu, MB Francis. Near-Quantitative Aqueous Synthesis of Rotaxanes via Bioconjugation to Oligopeptides and Proteins. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2016, 138, 15307­–15310
• CJ Bruns, JF Stoddart. Rotaxane-Based Molecular Muscles. Acc. Chem. Res. 2014, 47, 2186–2199
• CJ Bruns, D Fujita, M Hoshino, S Sato, JF Stoddart, M Fujita. Emergent Ion-Gated Binding of Cationic Host-Guest Complexes Within Cationic M₁₂L₂₄ Molecular Flasks. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 12027–12034
• CJ Bruns, DJ Herman, JB Minuzzo, JA Lehrman, SI Stupp. Rationalizing Molecular Design in the Electrodeposition of Anisotropic Lamellar Nanostructures. Chem. Mater. 2013, 25, 4330–4339