Molecular Surfactants

The development of self- and directed-assembly techniques is key for the fabrication of molecularly precise structures for applications ranging from biocompatible and/or bioactive systems to microelectronics.

These applications now demand patterned surface structures with ever-smaller features down to the sub-100 nm scale; however, traditional lithographic techniques such as photolithography cannot reproducibly fabricate such structures with molecular-scale organization. By employing a library of molecules with a spectrum of intermolecular-interaction strengths in conjunction with a variety of thin-film-processing techniques, it is becoming possible to fabricate nanometer-sized surface features with molecular precision.

Basics of the self-assembly process are illustrated in the Webinar “ Molecular Self-Assembly” from Sigma-Aldrich and Asemblon. The most recent advances in the field are discussed in the article “Selecting and Driving Monolayer Structures through Tailored Intermolecular Interactions “ by a group of scientists from Pennsylvania State University led by Professor P. S. Weiss and Professor A.M. Andrews.