Nanomechanical properties of hydrated organic thin films

Hydrated organic thin films are biological or synthetic molecularly thin coatings which impart a particular functionality to an underlying substrate and which have discrete water molecules associated with them. Such films exist in biology (e.g. cell membrane lipid bilayers) and have a broad array of potential engineering applications (e.g. biological implant and sensor surfaces, marine antifouling paints etc.). This doctoral thesis focuses on two important classes of hydrated organic thin films that were prepared and studied in vitro. The first model system was an oligo(ethylene oxide)-based self-assembling monolayer (OEO-SAM) which is a synthetic material that is known to exhibit exceptional resistance to nonspecific protein adsorption and, hence, it is a viable candidate for producing implant surfaces with improved biocompatibility. The second model system was the biologically relevant phosphorylcholine(PC)-supported lipid layer which mimics the structure of the cell membrane. The objective of this doctoral thesis was to quantify the functional form of the net surface interaction (force versus separation distance, F(D)), as well as the contact mechanical properties (e.g. elasticity, plasticity, fracture) of these two model systems under different solution conditions, in order to formulate a hypothesis for the molecular origins of the dominant interactions and furthermore, to gain a mechanistic understanding of their in vivo function and performance. For the OEO-SAMs, F(D) was found to exhibit the maximum monotonic repulsive functional form for intermediate surface packing densities (-70%) on loading (approach) and negligible adhesion (Fadhesion<0.3nN) on unloading (retract). Both were attributed to an electrostatic component arising from a dipole induced effective surface charge, as well as a nm-thick hydrated water layer.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2007

Author dc:creator

• Choi, Jae Hyeok

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Christine Ortiz.

• Civil and Environmental 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/1721.1/42984
• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Identifier URI

http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/42984

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/42984