Reconfigurable Microcube Assemblies at the Liquid/Air Interface: The Impact of Surface Tension on Orientation and Capillary-Force-Interaction-Driven Assembly
| Autor: | Mengdi Zuo, Holger Schönherr, Qimeng Song |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2019 |
| Předmět: |
Aqueous solution
Materials science Sensing applications Capillary action 02 engineering and technology Surfaces and Interfaces 010402 general chemistry 021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology Condensed Matter Physics 01 natural sciences 0104 chemical sciences Surface tension chemistry.chemical_compound chemistry Pulmonary surfactant Liquid air Electrochemistry General Materials Science Polystyrene Composite material Cube 0210 nano-technology Spectroscopy |
| Zdroj: | Langmuir. 35:7791-7797 |
| ISSN: | 1520-5827 0743-7463 |
| DOI: | 10.1021/acs.langmuir.9b01104 |
| Popis: | The systematic investigation of the dependence of the orientation and capillary interaction of hydrophobized polystyrene microcubes at the liquid/air interface on the surface tension of the aqueous subphase is reported. By decreasing the subphase surface tension, the preferential orientation of the cubes was observed to change independent of the surfactant type from the vertex up to the edge up and finally to the face up. Concomitantly, the structure of the aggregates obtained by cube assembly was observed to change from a close-packed hexagonal to tilted linear and finally to flat plate. In particular, the preferential orientation of the cubes was virtually independent of the surfactant charge at a constant surface tension. In addition, reconfigurable microcube assemblies at the liquid/air interface, which respond to the surface tension of the subphase, were observed for the first time. The dynamic reconfigurability of preformed microcube aggregates induced by adding surfactant to the subphase may open new pathways to dynamic assemblies at liquid/air interfaces, which may be interesting, e.g., for sensing applications. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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