Self-assembled functional organic monolayers on oxide-free copper

Copper/Epoxy Joints in Printed Circuit Boards: Manufacturing and Interfacial Failure Mechanisms

Printed circuit boards (PCBs) have a wide range of applications in electronics where they are used for electric signal transfer. For a multilayer build-up, thin copper foils are alternated with epoxy-based prepregs and laminated to each other. Adhesion between copper and epoxy composites is achieved by technologies based on mechanical interlocking or chemical bonding, however for future development, the understanding of failure mechanisms between these materials is of high importance. In literature, various interfacial failures are reported which lead to adhesion loss between copper and epoxy resins. This review aims to give an overview on common coupling technologies and possible failure mechanisms. The information reviewed can in turn lead to the development of new strategies, enhancing the adhesion strength of copper/epoxy joints and, therefore, establishing a basis for future PCB manufacturing.

Multifunctional Platinum@BSA-Rapamycin Nanocarriers for the Combinatorial Therapy of Cerebral Cavernous Malformation

Platinum nanoparticles (PtNPs) are antioxidant enzyme-mimetic nanomaterials with significant potential for the treatment of complex diseases related to oxidative stress. Among such diseases, Cerebral Cavernous Malformation (CCM) is a major cerebrovascular disorder of genetic origin, which affects at least 0.5% of the general population. Accumulated evidence indicates that loss-of-function mutations of the three known CCM genes predispose endothelial cells to oxidative stress-mediated dysfunctions by affecting distinct redox-sensitive signaling pathways and mechanisms, including pro-oxidant and antioxidant pathways and autophagy. A multitargeted combinatorial therapy might thereby represent a promising strategy for the effective treatment of this disease. Herein, we developed a multifunctional nanocarrier by combining the radical scavenging activity of PtNPs with the autophagy-stimulating activity of rapamycin (Rapa). Our results show that the combinatorial targeting of redox signaling and autophagy dysfunctions is effective in rescuing major molecular and cellular hallmarks of CCM disease, suggesting its potential for the treatment of this and other oxidative stress-related diseases.

Characterization of Self-Assembled Monolayers on a Ruthenium Surface

We have modified and stabilized the ruthenium surface by depositing a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of 1-hexadecanethiol on a polycrystalline ruthenium thin film. The growth mechanism, dynamics, and stability of these monolayers were studied. SAMs, deposited under ambient conditions, on piranha-cleaned and piranha + H₂SO₄ cleaned substrates were compared to monolayers formed on H-radical-cleaned Ru surfaces. We found that alkanethiols on H-radical-cleaned Ru formed densely packed monolayers that remained stable when kept in a nitrogen atmosphere. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) shows a distinct sulfur peak (BE = 162.3 eV), corresponding to metal-sulfur bonding. When exposed to ambient conditions, the SAM decayed over a period of hours.

Orthogonal chemical functionalization of patterned gold on silica surfaces

Single-step orthogonal chemical functionalization procedures have been developed with patterned gold on silica surfaces. Different combinations of a silane and a thiol were simultaneously deposited on a gold/silica heterogeneous substrate. The orthogonality of the functionalization (i.e., selective grafting of the thiol on the gold areas and the silane on the silica) was demonstrated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) as well as time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) mapping. The orthogonal functionalization was used to immobilize proteins onto gold nanostructures on a silica substrate, as demonstrated by atomic force microscopy (AFM). These results are especially promising in the development of future biosensors where the selective anchoring of target molecules onto nanostructured transducers (e.g., nanoplasmonic biosensors) is a major challenge.

Carbodiimide/NHS derivatization of COOH-terminated SAMs: activation or byproduct formation?

COOH-terminated self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) are widely used in biosensor technology to bind different amine-containing biomolecules. A covalent amide bond, however, can be achieved only if the carboxylic acids are activated. This activation process usually consists of forming an N-hydroxysuccinimidyl ester (NHS-ester) by consecutively reacting carboxylic acids with a carbodiimide and NHS. Though many papers report using this method,1-8 the experimental conditions vary greatly between them and chemical characterization at this stage is often omitted. Evidence of an efficient activation is therefore rarely shown. Furthermore, recent publications9-11 have highlighted the complexity of this process, with the possible formation of different byproducts. In this paper, we have conducted a study on NHS activation under different conditions with chemical characterization by polarization-modulation infrared reflection-absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy (ToF-SIMS). Our results indicate that the nature of the solvent and carbodiimide and the reactant concentrations play crucial roles in activation kinetics and efficiency.

Organic monolayers from 1-alkynes covalently attached to chromium nitride: alkyl and fluoroalkyl termination

Strategies to modify chromium nitride (CrN) surfaces are important because of the increasing applications of these materials in various areas such as hybrid electronics, medical implants, diffusion barrier layers, corrosion inhibition, and wettability control. The present work presents the first surface immobilization of alkyl and perfluoro-alkyl (from C6 to C18) chains onto CrN substrates using appropriately functionalized 1-alkynes, yielding covalently bound, high-density organic monolayers with excellent hydrophobic properties and a high degree of short-range order. The obtained monolayers were characterized in detail by water contact angle, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ellipsometry, and infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS).

Surface chemical conversion of 3-glycidoxypropyldimethylethoxysilane on hydroxylated silicon surface: FT-IR, contact angle and ellipsometry analysis

The chemical conversion of the top surface of 3-glycidoxypropyldimethylethoxysilane (GPDMES) on hyroxylated silicon surface has been studied as a function of reaction time. A multiple-step procedure was applied in this study. At first, GPDMES molecules were self-assembled on the hydroxylated silicon surface. The second step was the modification of epoxy groups with 3,3'-iminodipropionitrile and the last step was the amidoximation reaction of nitrile groups. Existence of the monolayers covalently attached to silicon surfaces were revealed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Modification, conversion and thickness of surfaces were followed by FT-IR and ellipsometry analysis.

The characterization of self-assembled monolayers on copper surfaces by low-temperature plasma mass spectrometry

We describe direct analysis of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on copper surfaces by low temperature plasma (LTP) mass spectroscopy (MS). Two kinds of SAMs formed from n-dodecylmercaptan (NDM) and l-phenyl-5-mercaptotetrazole (PMTA) were prepared on copper by spontaneous chemisorption. With the LTP probe, desorption and ionization of the SAMs was easily achieved, and the ions produced were introduced into MS for analysis. Characteristic fragment ions from NDM SAMs, mainly [M + M - H](+) (M is the NDM molecule) and from PMTA SAMs, mainly [M + H - S](+) (M is the PMTA molecule), were both absent in the MS spectra of neat NDM and PMTA samples. This provided evidence of the formation of SAMs on copper. As a supplementary method, LTP-MS is helpful in obtaining information on the barrier properties of SAMs on copper, such as inhibitor efficiency (IE) and the surface adsorption concentration of corrosive electrolyte (Γ*) surrounding copper. Aiming for an evaluation of the reliability of LTP-MS, a comparative study of our method and the traditional method of cyclic voltammetry (CV) showed a correlation coefficient higher than 0.97. In addition, a rough, simple procedure for imaging of the distribution of the molecules adsorbed on copper surface was presented. The study supplied a rapid and simple method for direct investigation of SAMs on copper.