Organization
of Alkane Amines on a Gold Surface: Structure,
Surface Dipole, and Electron Transfer
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Abstract
Surface
molecular self-assembly is a fast advancing field with
broad applications in molecular electronics, sensing and advanced
materials. Although a large number of practical systems utilize alkanethiols,
there is increasing interest in alkylamine self-assembled monolayers
(SAMs). In this article, the molecular and electronic structure of
alkylamine SAMs on Au surfaces was studied. It was found that amine-terminated
alkanes self-assemble, forming a compact layer with the amine headgroup
interacting directly with the Au surface and the hydrocarbon backbone
tilted by around 30° with respect to the surface normal. The
dense layers formed substantially decrease electron tunneling across
the metal/solution interface and form a dipole layer with positive
charges residing at the monolayer/vacuum interface