engleski

Self-assembled monolayers of organic molecules on metal substrates: Fundamental and applied studies

The interaction between (bio)organic molecules and surfaces is one of the most exciting and widely studied aspects of modern surface science. The most remarkable molecule-substrate interaction is spontaneous self-assembly of (bio)organic molecules on surfaces into well-ordered arrays. The self-assembly is a simple process taking place during immersion of an appropriate substrate in a solution of (bio)organic molecules. How well these assemblies are ordered, depends on the nature of the chemical interaction between the substrate and the adsorbate, as well as on the type of intermolecular interactions. Self-assembled monolayers provide the needed design flexibility at the individual molecular level due to the possible further chemical modification of the terminal functional group of the monolayer. This ability makes self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) excellent systems for a more fundamental investigation of phenomena affected by competing intermolecular, molecule-substrate and molecule-solvent interactions like wetting, adhesion, sensing, electron transfer, molecular recognition, and corrosion. In this study, the self-assembly of n-alkanethiols on gold and copper was carried out to obtain a comprehensive overview of the suitability of the SAMs as functional coatings on inert (gold) and reactive (copper) metals, for possible applications in various advanced technologies. The characterization of the SAMs was performed using a range of state-of-the-art surface and electrochemical ac and dc methods. Fundamental investigations of the relationships among structure, electric and dielectric properties of SAMs, and the heterogeneous charge transfer reaction were performed on a model system gold|SAM|electrolyte. The application of SAMs as barrier (blocking) layers for the corrosion protection of reactive metals in aggressive environments was studied on the system copper|SAM|electrolyte.

(Bio)organic molecules; Self-assembled monolayers; Gold; Copper

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