Molecular Science in Self-Assembled Monolayers

Abstract

Organic self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) prepared by self-assembly of sulfur-containing organic molecules on metal surfaces have been extensively studied for more than a decade because of the possibility of novel applications as biosensor, molecular recognition, nanolithography, nonlinear optics and corrosion inhibition. In order to fabricate nano-devices based on thiol-modified gold surface, it is essential to understand molecular packing structure, self-assembly processes, structural order and disorder, and stability of organic SAMs formed on a metal surface. One of main purposes in this study is to reveal such problems from the nanoscopic viewpoint. Here we have examined organic SAMs formed on Au(111) by organosulfur compounds such as alkanethiols, dialkyl disulfides, dialkyl sulfides, and aromatic thiols using various surface analysis techniques, especially, using scanning tunneling microscopy. In this talk, we will introduce clear answers with molecular precision for a long-standing open question regarding organic SAMs as well as demonstrate, in particular, a new and simple insightful method for revealing new fundamental aspects, such as chemical reactions, interactions, and orientation mechanism, and for monitoring target molecules on a surface.