Structural analysis of PEO-PBO copolymer monolayers at the air-water interface.
X-ray reflectivity (XR) and grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXD) have been used to examine an oxyethylene-b-oxybutylene (E(23)B(8)) copolymer film at the air-water interface. The XR data were fitted using both a one- and a two-layer model that outputted the film thickness, roughness, and electron density. The best fit to the experimental data was obtained using a two-layer model (representing the oxyethylene and oxybutylene blocks, respectively), which showed a rapid thickening of the copolymer film at pressures above 7 mN/m. The large roughness values found indicate a significant degree of intermixing between the blocks and back up the GIXD data, which showed no long range lateral ordering within the layer. It was found from the electron density model results that there is a large film densification at 7 mN/m, possibly suggesting conformational changes within the film, even though no such change occurs on the pressure-area isotherm at the same surface pressure.
Hodges
Chris S
CS
Institute for Materials Research, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK. c.s.hodges@leeds.ac.uk
Neville
Frances
F
Konovalov
Oleg
O
Hammond
Robert B
RB
Gidalevitz
David
D
Hamley
Ian W
IW