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Special Issue introduction:
Recent developments in a wide range of self-assembled materials, including inorganic and organic
nanostructures and materials, has attracted growing research interest in the field of chemistry, physics,
biology and material science. Self-assembly is a phenomenon where building blocks, such as small
molecules, macromolecules, colloids or macroscopic particles, organize into multi-component functional
and adaptable hierarchical structures or materials via supramolecular weak interactions. Many of them
resemble biological or life-like materials, in both structure and function at equilibrium or non-equilibrium
states, that are probably unachievable through individual components or building blocks. Although
there are distinct examples of self-assembled materials, a detailed understanding of thermodynamics
and kinetics of self-assembled processes is essential. Moreover, how to assemble different types of
structures, how to control their geometries and structural parameters, how to optimize the performance
of functional assemblies are important for designing materials with specific applications. The Special
Issue is focused on recent progress in the broad interdisciplinary areas of self-assembly structures or
materials either at equilibrium or non-equilibrium and their potential applications.

Specific areas to be covered include, but are not limited to:
Self-assembly of colloids
Macromolecular self-assembly (DNA, protein, natural and synthetic polymers)
Out-of-equilibrium self-assembly
Self-assembled porous materials
Dynamic nanostructures
Molecular machines
Metal-organic structures
Responsive supramolecular hydrogels/biomaterials