Hierarchical Design Strategies to Produce Internally Structured Nanofibers

Nanofibers have attracted significant interest due to their unique properties such as high specific surface area, high aspect ratio, and spatial interconnectivity. Nanofibers can exhibit multifunctional properties and unique opportunities for promising applications in a wide variety of fields. Hierarchical design strategies are being used to prescribe the internal structure of nanofibers, such as core-sheath, concentric layers, particles distributed randomly or on a lattice, and co-continuous network phases. This review presents a comprehensive overview of design strategies being used to produce the next generation of nanofiber systems. It includes a description of nanofiber processing methods and their effects on the nano- and microstructure. Physico-chemical effects, such as self-assembly and phase separation, on the ultimate morphology of fibers made from designed emulsions, polymer blends, and block copolymers, are then described. This review concludes with perspectives on existing challenges and future directions for hierarchical design strategies to produce internally structured nanofibers.