The main purpose of this research is to show the effects of solvent nature, partial charge distribution and polarity index, on the preparation of uniform silane self-assembly monolayers. Octadecyltrichlorosilane ( OTS) on silicon wafers was chosen as a case study. Contrary to what was thought before, dipole moment data are not enough and one needs accompanying data on partial charge distribution and polarity index to predict the best solvent for a uniform self-assembled monolayer ( SAM). Results can be applied to other monolayer-solvent systems. (c) 2008 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.