Fundamental studies of polyelectrolyte multilayer films : optical, mechanical, and lithographic property control

Polyelectrolyte multilayers (PEMs) are a versatile type of thin film that is created via layer-by-layer assembly of positively and negatively charged polymers from aqueous solutions. Precise control of the PEM thickness, chemical functionality, and molecular architecture is made possible by changing the polyelectrolytes and assembly conditions during film growth, allowing films to be designed with properties suitable for a given application. This thesis elucidates the intra-film structure and interactions of PEMs through the use of optical, mechanical, and chemical techniques. PEM rugate filters, wherein the refractive index varies through the depth of the film in a continuous, periodic fashion, were constructed by confining silver nanoparticle growth to layers of nanometer-scale thickness. The ability to construct such structures is shown to be dependent on the ability to precisely control the concentration of metal-binding carboxylic acid groups throughout the depth of the film. Software to enable the computation design and optical simulation of these and similar structures was developed.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2007

Author dc:creator

• Nolte, Adam John

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Michael F. Rubner and Robert E. Cohen.

• Materials Science and Engineering.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/38516

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/38516