Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

The self-assembly of tetradecylamine (C14) and of mixtures of tetradecyl and octadecylamine (C18) molecules from chloroform solutions on mica has been studied using atomic force microscopy (AFM). For pure components self-assembly proceeds more slowly for C14 than for C18. In both cases after equilibrium is reached islands of tilted molecules cover a similar fraction of the surface. Images of films formed by mixtures of molecules acquired before equilibrium is reached (short ripening time at room temperature) show only islands with the height corresponding to C18 with many pores. After a long ripening time, when equilibrium is reached, islands of segregated pure components are formed.