Another area I am interested in is ultrathin films formed by self-assembly. These films are synthesized by simply dipping a substrate into a millimolar solution of a molecule that will react with the surface of the substrate. The molecules then pack and self-assemble to give a well ordered, and ideally complete, monolayer. This is an area of intense research since its discovery ten years ago. I wish to develop new methods of forming multilayered structures.
Multilayered films are present in most electronic devices, such as diodes, LEDs, lasers or sensors.
At present, it is both experimentally and chemically difficult to construct multilayered structures by self-assembly. One must build from the ground up , often taking several steps to chemically alter the top surface with each monolayer deposited. My research takes two or more self-assembled monolayers and react with each other by direct contact. We are just getting started on this project. We swell an organic polymer in some solvent, and allow an inorganic precursor to diffuse into and polymerize in the polymer matrix.