Professor Kathy Rowlen of the University of Colorado-Boulder is funded by the Analytical and Surface Chemistry Program to use confocal microscopy and nonlinear spectroscopy to study thin organic films. The goal is to learn how thin films deposit on surfaces. Three experiments are being performed: the optical properties of films from sub-monolayer to multilayer will be measured, the spatial resolution of second harmonic generation and other optical methods will be increased, and "dip-pen-nanolithography" is used for producing well defined nanopatterns of optically interesting dyes. Optical microscopy is required rather than average measurements because inhomogeneities on the nanoscale can govern orientations and domain growth of thin films.
Such studies are required to understand the deposition of oligonucleotides and proteins which are used for microarrays and lab-on-a-chip formats. Fundamental research on film deposition serves as an example of how basic research in chemistry can enable advances in human health. The students will learn both measurement considerations and surface science.
