title: Tuning the local frictional and electrostatic responses of nanostructured SrTiO(3)-surfaces by self-assembled molecular monolayers.
abstract: Exploiting the capability of preparing nanostructured bifunctional terminated SrTiO(3) substrates (SrO and TiO(2)), the surface properties have been locally tuned by employing a double bottom-up strategy which combines the use of chemically nanopatterned substrates with molecular self-assembly. The dynamics of surface diffusion that allows SrO and TiO(2) chemical-termination nano-patterning of the SrTiO(3) is first addressed. Second, termination-dependent heterogeneous nucleation is used to demonstrate that stearic acid selectively grows on the TiO(2) terminated terraces. This adsorption improves the frictional properties and modifies the surface contact potential. The possibility of simultaneously tailoring at the nanoscale different surface properties of widely employed oxide substrates is promising for building up new devices useful for emerging applications.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
authors.forename: Markos
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Paradinas
authors.forename: Luis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Garzón
authors.forename: Florencio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sánchez
authors.forename: Romain
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bachelet
authors.forename: David B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Amabilino
authors.forename: Josep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fontcuberta
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ocal