Increasing the Diameter of Vertically Aligned, Hexagonally Ordered Pores in Mesoporous Silica Thin Films.

ABSTRACT: The variation in pore size in mesoporous films produced by electrochemically assisted self-assembly (EASA) with the surfactant chain length is described. EASA produces a hexagonal array of pores perpendicular to the substrate surface by using an applied potential to organize cationic surfactants and the resultant current to drive condensation in a silica sol. Here, we show that a range of pore sizes between 2 and 5 nm in diameter is available with surfactants of the form [Me₃NC_nH_2n+1]Br, with alkyl chain lengths between C₁₄ and C₂₄. The film quality, pore order, pore size, and pore accessibility are probed with a range of techniques.

SUBMITTER: Mohamed NAN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9097518 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature