Self-Assembling Characteristics of A New Nonionic Gemini Surfactant

Cationic Gemini surfactant at the air/water interface

The surface properties and structures of a cationic Gemini surfactant with a rigid spacer, p-xylyl-bis(dimethyloctadecylammonium bromide) ([C(18)H(37)(CH(3))(2)N(+)CH(2)C(6)H(4)CH(2)N(+)(CH(3))(2)C(18)H(37)],2Br(-), abbreviated as 18-Ar-18,2Br(-1)), at the air/water interface were investigated. It is found that the surface pressure-molecular area isotherms observed at different temperatures do not exhibit a plateau region but display an unusual "kink" before collapse. The range of the corresponding minimum compressibility and maximum compressibility modulus indicates that the monolayer is in the liquid-expanded state. The monolayers were transferred onto mica and quartz plates by the Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) technique. The structures of monolayers at various surface pressures were studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and UV-vis spectroscopy, respectively. AFM measurements show that at lower surface pressures, unlike the structures of complex or hybrid films formed by Gemini amphiphiles with DNA, dye, or inorganic materials or the Langmuir film formed by the nonionic Gemini surfactant, in this case network-like labyrinthine interconnected ridges are formed. The formation of the structures can be interpreted in terms of the spinodal decomposition mechanism. With the increase of the surface pressure up to 35 mN/m, surface micelles dispersed in the network-like ridges gradually appear which might be caused by both the spinodal decomposition and dewetting. The UV-vis adsorption shows that over the whole range of surface pressures, the molecules form a J-aggregate in LB films, which implies that the spacers construct a pi-pi aromatic stacking. This pi-pi interaction between spacers and the van der Waals interaction between hydrophobic chains lead to the formation of both networks and micelles. The labyrinthine interconnected ridges are formed first because of the rapid evaporation of solvent during the spreading processes; with increasing surface pressure, some of the alkyl chains reorient from tilting to vertical, forming surface micelles dispersed in the network-like ridges due to the strong interaction among film molecules.

Design and interfacial behavior of two series of gemini amphiphiles with different charge positions based on imidazole moiety

Two series of gemini amphiphiles based on 2-heptadecylimidazole were designed. One is exo-BisImC17Cn (n=2, 4, 6, 8, 10), in which the positive charges are positioned on the outsides of the headgroups. The other is endo-BisImC17Cn (n = 2, 4, 6, 8, 10), whose positive charges are localized on the insides of the headgroups. The interfacial behavior at the air/water interface of these gemini amphiphiles was investigated in relation to the effect of the charge position and the spacer length. Monolayers of exo-BisImC17Cn show small differences in interfacial behavior when spread on water and aqueous Na2SO4 subphases. In contrast, significant distinctions were observed for molecules of endo-BisImC17Cn. The limiting areas of endo-BisImC17Cn monolayers on water are obviously larger than those on the aqueous Na2SO4 solution. While the limiting areas of the exo-BisImC17Cn monolayers increased monotonically with the spacer length, those of the endo-BisImC17C10 monolayer on Na2SO4 solution is obviously smaller than those of endo-BisImC17C6 and endo-BisImC17C8 monolayers, suggesting the wicket conformation of the alkyl chain in endo-BisImC17C10. On the other hand, both of the gemini amphiphiles could form complex monolayers with negatively charged TPPS at the air/water interface. The transferred complex multilayer films of the gemini amphiphiles/TPPS showed supramolecular chirality, although both of the gemini amphiphiles and TPPS are achiral. The exciton couplet was observed for the endo-BisImC17Cn/TPPS films, while no couplet was detected for the exo-BisImC17Cn/TPPS films. A reasonable comparison between the two series of geminis in relation to the effect of charge positions and the spacer lengths on the interfacial behavior and the supramolecular chirality was performed.

Ru(II)-based metallosurfactant forming inverted aggregates

Knowing the advantages of incorporating a transition metal into interfaces, we report on the first inverted aggregates formed using metallosurfactants. The metallosurfactant possesses four long linear tails that account for the shielding of the polar headgroup in apolar solvents. The nature of the so-formed aggregates changes dramatically from inverted vesicles (toluene) to inverted micelles (hexane). The size of the aggregates was determined using dynamic light scattering. Atomic force microscopy allowed us to study the dry structure of the vesicles on a glass surface.

Fabrication and photoluminescence of hybrid organized molecular films of a series of gemini amphiphiles and europium(III)-containing polyoxometalate

Organic/inorganic hybrid monolayers, consisting of an oval decatungstoeuropate (EuW10) with photoluminescence and a series of gemini-type amphiphiles with various lengths of the flexible hydrophobic spacers, were formed through electrostatic interaction at the air/water interface. The ultrathin hybrid multilayer films could be fabricated through the horizontal transfer of the monolayers onto the solid substrates. The characteristic absorption band of EuW10 in the UV spectra of the hybrid films showed a slight red shift in comparison with that in solution, indicating the ordered arrangement of EuW10 in the hybrid films. FT-IR spectra of the hybrid films presented characteristic bands of EuW10, indicating that the structure of the cluster was kept in the films. X-ray diffraction measurements of the films revealed that the well-defined layer structures were formed in these multilayer films and the EuW10 cluster ions were orientated with their short axis parallel to the film surface. Typical photoluminescence of the 5D0 --> 7F2 and 5D0 --> 7F1 transitions of EuW10 was observed in the hybrid films. Interestingly, the relative intensity of the two emission bands varied with the spacer length of the gemini amphiphiles in the films. A size matching between EuW10 and the gemini amphiphile with a hexamethylene spacer was observed, which showed the lowest ratio of the emission intensity of 5D0 --> 7F2 to that of 5D0 --> 7F1. Circular nanoparticles were observed in the AFM images for all these hybrid films. In addition, the size of the formed nanoparticles showed a dependence on the spacer length.