title: Thin films of bicontinuous cubic mesostructured silica templated by a nonionic surfactant.
abstract: Thin films ofbicontinuous cubic mesostructured silica were formed using the nonionic poly(oxyethylene)-alkyl ether surfactant Brij-56 as a structure-directing agent. The synthesis conditions were chosen such that the estimated volume fraction of surfactant in the silica/surfactant films corresponded approximately to the composition at which the bicontinuous cubic phase occurs in the water/surfactant phase diagram. Small-angle X-ray scattering and transmission electron microscopy measurements reveal that the cubic phase corresponds to the Ia3(-)d double-gyroid structure, with some distortion due to anisotropic film shrinkage. The cubic structure grows as faceted domains that are well-oriented with respect to the substrate and often occur in coexistence with a lamellar phase. By adjusting the temperature at which the films are aged, it is possible to create films with 2D hexagonal, cubic, or lamellar structures at a single composition.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA.
authors.forename: Ryan C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Hayward
authors.forename: Peter C A
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Alberius
authors.forename: Edward J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Kramer
authors.forename: Bradley F
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: Chmelka