CHAPTER 10
Fabrication, Properties, and
Applications of Thin Films
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
This final chapter discusses the fabrication and applications of thin films, a
category of 2D nanomaterials with diverse compositions and applications.
Thin films can range from simple layers of amphiphiles or model biological membranes to solid layers of silicon, oxides, and metals in integrated
circuits, or even combinations of organic soft matter and “hard” inorganic
structures. As film and device fabrication and surface functionalization are
highly active fields of research, this chapter provides a survey of key
technologies and recent primary literature intended to assist students in
transitioning from “textbook” material to active research in the field.
10.1 LANGMUIR–BLODGETT FILMS
First demonstrated by Katharine Blodgett in 1934 (Blodgett, 1935), the
Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) technique has been by far the oldest and most
extensively studied organic nanofilm formation method. Essentially, a
monolayer at the air–water interface (the Langmuir film) is mechanically
transferred to a solid substrate generating the LB film. Although interest
waned until the 1970s, the potential application of LB films in the field of
optics and material science has revived LB research. This was fueled by
the results that showed an LB film comprised of a dye to be the first
multilayer film to produce interesting NLO effects. Today, research
toward the synthesis of tailor-made molecules with intrinsic nonlinear
susceptibilities and their incorporation into LB films is flourishing.
Fabrication, Properties, and
Applications of Thin Films
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
This final chapter discusses the fabrication and applications of thin films, a
category of 2D nanomaterials with diverse compositions and applications.
Thin films can range from simple layers of amphiphiles or model biological membranes to solid layers of silicon, oxides, and metals in integrated
circuits, or even combinations of organic soft matter and “hard” inorganic
structures. As film and device fabrication and surface functionalization are
highly active fields of research, this chapter provides a survey of key
technologies and recent primary literature intended to assist students in
transitioning from “textbook” material to active research in the field.
10.1 LANGMUIR–BLODGETT FILMS
First demonstrated by Katharine Blodgett in 1934 (Blodgett, 1935), the
Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) technique has been by far the oldest and most
extensively studied organic nanofilm formation method. Essentially, a
monolayer at the air–water interface (the Langmuir film) is mechanically
transferred to a solid substrate generating the LB film. Although interest
waned until the 1970s, the potential application of LB films in the field of
optics and material science has revived LB research. This was fueled by
the results that showed an LB film comprised of a dye to be the first
multilayer film to produce interesting NLO effects. Today, research
toward the synthesis of tailor-made molecules with intrinsic nonlinear
susceptibilities and their incorporation into LB films is flourishing.