This award in the Research Planning Grant for women program is made by the Chemistry Division to Dr. Rosina M. Georgiadis of the Chemistry Department, George Washington University. An optical technique, surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy, will be combined with in situ scanning probe microscopy to investigate the chemistry and dynamics of ultra thin films at metal/liquid interfaces. The SPR method will be applied to the study of the process of monolayer film assembly at an interface, and will provide characterization of film structure and stability. Work during the planning grant period will concentrate on the construction of the SPR system and proof of method measurements on well-studied long chain thiol molecular layers. The project will increase understanding of thin film growth and thus is of technologically relevant to a wide range of disciplines.
