Ultrathin Langmuir-Blodgett polymer films

Lithography and Spectroscopy of Ultrathin Langmuir—Blodgett Polymer Films... 

KUANETAL. Ultrathin Langmuir-Blodgett Polymer Films 355... 

Wegner, G, Ultrathin Films of Polymers. Ber. Bunsenges. Phys. Chem. 95,1326 (1991). Menzel, H. Hairy Rod-like Polymers. In The Polymeric Materials Encyclopedia Synthesis, Properties and Applications. J. S. Salamone, Ed- CRC Press Boca Raton (1996), p. 2917. Menzel, H., and Hallensleben, M. L. Langmuir-Blodgett-Films of Photochromic Polyglutamates. Polym. Bull. 27, 89 (1991). 

Highly functionalized TMSC was exploited for the continuous polymer fractionation [105]. Because of their stiff backbone with flexible side chains (so-called hair rod molecules) ultrathin films by Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) technique could be formed [106] yielding cellulose films after regeneration with HCl gas [107, 108]. 

It is well known that the surface/interface of materials usually exhibits properties and behaviors that are considerably different from the bulk phase. The functionality of the soKd surface modified by an organic thin film, such as a self-assembled monolayer (SAM), Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) ultrathin film or polymer thin film, depends significantly on its surface molecular structure [1-4]. Therefore, elucidation and control of the surface molecular structure is essential to understand the novel functionality introduced by the modification. Most existing surface techniques require the sample to be placed in an ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) environment [5] and are therefore unsuitable for studies in either air or liquid. On the other hand, as comprehensively reviewed in this chapter, a number of modem instrumental analysis methods, such as infrared reflection absorption... 

Besides the electrochemical method, other methods such as the chemically initiated polymerization method, the vapor-phase methods, and the Langmuir-Blodgett method have been devised for the preparation of conducting polymers. In the chemical method, a chemical oxidant such as ferric chloride initiates the polymerization. Polymerization usually results in a powdery product and the resultant powder is then compressed into a pellet or dissolved in a suitable solvent such as methylene chloride or chloroform and spin coated on a substrate. In the vapor-phase technique, which is a variation of the chemical method, a monomer film is vacuum sublimed onto a glass substrate and then exposed to a solution or vapor of ferric chloride for oxidative polymerization. Films thus prepared are usually thick, of the order of micrometers. For some applications in which ultrathin and very uniform films are required, the Langmuir-Blodgelt technique for depositing monolayers has also been tried successfully [5]. 

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