Department of Chemistry, New York University 

Anisotropic colloids with complex shapes and tunable compositions, are synthesized in bulk via an emulsion-based method. Solid particles are systematically dewetted from polymerizable micro-droplets yielding a whole new class of asymmetric colloids. We demonstrate that the method is applicable to a broad spectrum of materials, from polymer particles to inorganic semiconductors and magnetic materials. This synthetic methodology represent a new and general tool for designing functional colloids, such as micro swimmers, colloidal surfactants and self-assembling building blocks.