MPI Kolloquiumsreihe: Prof. Dr. Helmut Cölfen, Non-classical crystallization of organic molecules

Das Max-Planck-Institut Magdeburg lädt Sie herzlich zu seiner öffentlichen Kolloquiumsreihe ein. Hochrangige WissenschaftlerInnen verschiedener Fachgebiete aus renommierten Forschungseinrichtungen aus Deutschland und weltweit präsentieren ihre Forschungsarbeit.

Non-classical nucleation and crystallization are important alternative pathways to classical nucleation theory (CNT) and the classical layer-by-layer crystal growth according to the Kossel model. In this lecture, the basic concepts of non-classical nucleation as well as non-classical crystallization are introduced and applied to organic molecules. Non-classical nucleation involves pre-nucleation cluster (PNC) species, which were found for all amino acids. In this context, especially the two-step resp. multi-step nucleation will be discussed, which is observed especially for proteins. In this case, liquid precursor phases to crystallization are observed. These can be temporarily stabilized by polymers and a few examples for amino acids and an organic pigment show what is possible beyond the limitations of classical crystallization models. Liquid precursors also play a role for pharmaceutical molecules as will be shown for the well-known pain killer Ibuprofen. These examples demonstrate the application potential of non-classical crystallization approaches.