title: In situ investigations on organic foam films using neutron and synchrotron radiation.
abstract: We report on small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) and X-ray scattering (SAXS) investigations of foam films stabilized by sodium dodecyl sulfate. Previous measurements on dry foams (Axelos, M. A. V.; Boue, B. Langmuir 2003, 19, 6598) have shown the presence of spikes in the two-dimensional scattering data which suggest that the incident beam is reflected on some film surfaces. The latter interpretation is confirmed by new neutron studies performed on ordered ("bamboo") foams which allow selection of single films. In the first case, we show that the spikes of the scattered intensity can be obtained by reflection on two parts of the foam, namely, the films and the Plateau borders. With synchrotron radiation, first observations of distinct interference fringes have allowed an accurate determination of the film thickness. A comparison with X-ray and neutron data is made, opening a general discussion about the capabilities of small-angle scattering techniques for studying the microscopic properties of foam films.
authors.affiliation: Groupe Matière Condensée et Matériaux, UMR CNRS 6626, Université de Rennes I, Campus de Beaulieu, 35042 Rennes Cedex, France. janine.etrillard@univ-rennes1.fr
authors.forename: Janine
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Etrillard
authors.forename: Monique A V
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Axelos
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Cantat
authors.forename: Franck
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Artzner
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Renault
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.forename: Renaud
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Delannay
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Boué