Résumé
The breakthroughs on micelle-templated synthesis in the nineties have made available a whole panoply of ordered mesoporous materials with extremely narrow pore-size distribution and high surface area. The mechanisms of self-assembly of surfactant molecules and inorganic species have been studied in depth using the available knowledge on the physical chemistry of colloid phases. Tailor-made materials can be prepared at any scale between 2 and 10 nm, and the available palette is broadening at every other issue of the scientific journals. A better knowledge of the phases confined in nanometer-scale matrices is urgently needed to provide a link between the synthesis of the host solid and the processing of guest molecules. This chapter discusses some data on the physics of molecules adsorbed in pores at the nanometer scale and presents some hints about the assessment of the properties of mesoporous adsorbents. The preparation of quantum dots and quantum wires has allowed tailoring the electronic and magnetic properties of semiconductors.