(438b) Simulation Study of Colloidal Quasicrystals Engineered with DNA

Quasicrystals are structures that are ordered but not periodic. Since the first discovery, many researchers have been intrigued by their unusual structural features. However, rational design and realization of colloidal quasicrystals have not yet been fully understood. Here, we demonstrate the spontaneous assembly of a quasicrystal in the system of decahedral particles using molecular dynamics and Monte Carlo simulations. The symmetry of the decahedron together with the facet alignment enabled by a DNA hybridization produces local five- and six-coordinated motifs resulting in a new dodecagonal quasicrystal. Interestingly, the quasicrystalline layers show stacking disorder along the 12-fold axis, which is contrary to what is expected for axial quasicrystals. We demonstrate this stacking disorder is attributed to the local phason reorganization driven by entropy.