Langmuir, Vol.16, No.7, 3077-3081, 2000
Surfactant aggregates at a flat, isotropic hydrophobic surface
We report results of surfactant aggregate morphologies at an amorphous hydrophobic surface whose roughness is small compared to the size of a micelle. Direct imaging by atomic force microscopy shows that single-chain ionic, nonionic, and zwitterionic surfactants, which form spherical micelles in solution, form globular aggregates consistent with half-micelles at an amorphous hydrophobic surface. This result is consistent with the expected isotropy of chain-surface interactions.
Keywords:SOLID-LIQUID INTERFACES;GRAPHITE-SOLUTION INTERFACE;SUBSTRATEHYDROPHOBICITY;NONIONIC SURFACTANTS;FORCE MICROSCOPY;ORGANIZATION;GEOMETRY