Digital alloys and methods for forming the same

1. A method of forming an alloy comprising:

forming a plurality of biological templates by:

(i) selecting a first peptide sequence that has a specific binding affinity for a first nanoparticle of a first material by evolutionary screening a plurality of peptide sequences;

(ii) selecting a second peptide sequence that has a specific binding affinity for a second nanoparticle of a second material by evolutionary screening a plurality of peptide sequences;

(iii) sequencing the first peptide sequence and the second peptide sequence; and

(iv) genetically engineering the biological template to express first peptide sequences and the second peptide sequences in a number ratio of x:y (0<x<1, 0<y<1);

binding the first nanoparticles to respective first peptide sequences;

binding the second nanoparticles to respective second peptide sequences; and

allowing the biological templates to aggregate into two-dimensional or three-dimensional structures such that the first nanoparticles of the first material and the second nanoparticles of the second material form the alloy as a continuous material having the first material and the second material by aggregating the biological templates into two-dimensional or three-dimensional structures, wherein the first material is a compound represented by A m B n , the second material is a compound represented by C p D q and the alloy can be represented by (A m B n ) x (C p D q ) y , wherein, each of A, B, C and D is independently an element of Groups IB, VIA and VIIIB of the Periodic Table; 0≦m≦1; 0≦n≦1; m+n=1; and 0≦p≦1; 0≦q≦1; and p+q=1, provided that m and n are not 0 at the same time, and p and q are not 0at the same time, and wherein A, B and C are different elements, D is the same as B, and the alloy is a ternary alloy.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the biological template is a protein.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the protein is a chaperonin or a genetically engineered variant thereof, a S-layer protein or a genetically engineered variant thereof, or an apoferritin or a genetically engineered variant thereof.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the biological template is a biological scaffold fused with the first peptide sequence and the second peptide sequence.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the biological scaffold is a viral particle, a bacteriophage, an amyloid fiber, or a capsid.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein binding the first nanoparticles to respective first peptide sequences comprises nucleating the first nanoparticles from a solution phase that contains a precursor of the first nanoparticles.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein binding the second nanoparticles to respective second peptide sequences comprises nucleating the second nanoparticles from a solution phase that contains a precursor of the second nanoparticles.