TY - JOUR A1 - Girard-Lauriault, Pierre-Luc A1 - Gross, Thomas A1 - Lippitz, Andreas A1 - Unger, Wolfgang T1 - Chemical and elemental depth profiling of very thin organic layers by constant kinetic energy XPS: a new synchrotron XPS analysis strategy N2 - We present a new synchrotron X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy strategy for surface chemical analysis of materials. Our approach is based on the acquisition of photoelectron spectra at constant kinetic energies with the help of a tunable synchrotron X-radiation source. This ensures both constant and tunable information depth for all elements in a very thin organic layer. Many of the problems known to XPS depth profiling using laboratory equipment are thereby avoided. Using our methodology, the 95% information depth, z95%, can be tuned down to about 0.7 nm in organic materials. The upper limit in our study at the HE-SGM monochromator dipole magnet beamline at the synchrotron radiation source BESSY II is about 4.3 nm. Elemental quantification is achieved through relative sensitivity factors (RSF) specific to the measurement conditions, determined either with the help of calculated photoionization cross sections and inelastic mean free paths or experimentally. The potential of the technique is demonstrated for the in-depth analysis of plasma deposited nitrogen-rich organic thin films used in biomedical applications. PY - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/ac300585q SN - 0003-2700 SN - 1520-6882 VL - 84 IS - 14 SP - 5984 EP - 5991 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington, DC AN - OPUS4-26299 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Girard-Lauriault, Pierre-Luc A1 - Illgen, René A1 - Ruiz, J.-C. A1 - Wertheimer, M. R. A1 - Unger, Wolfgang T1 - Surface functionalization of graphite and carbon nanotubes by vacuum-ultraviolet photochemical reactions N2 - Graphite and multiwall carbon nanotube surfaces were functionalized by vacuum-ultraviolet induced photochemistry in NH3 or O2, in order to introduce amino- (NH2) or hydroxyl (OH) functionalities, respectively. Modified surfaces were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), which showed significant incorporation of nitrogen (N) and oxygen (O) at the materials’ surface. While high-resolution XP spectra did not yield much specific information about the incorporated functional groups, chemical derivatization with 4-trifluoromethyl benzaldehyde and trifluoroacetic anhydride accompanied by XPS enabled quantification of NH2 and OH groups, respectively. Using near edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, we assessed the conservation of the aromatic structure following functionalization treatments. KW - Carbon nanotubes KW - Graphite KW - Vacuum ultraviolet photochemistry KW - Surface functionalization KW - Amino groups KW - Hydroxyl KW - Derivatization PY - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsusc.2012.03.012 SN - 0169-4332 SN - 1873-5584 VL - 258 IS - 22 SP - 8448 EP - 8454 PB - North-Holland CY - Amsterdam AN - OPUS4-26233 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Girard-Lauriault, Pierre-Luc A1 - Dietrich, Paul A1 - Gross, Thomas A1 - Unger, Wolfgang T1 - Is quantitative chemical derivatization XPS of plasma deposited organic coatings a valid analytical procedure? N2 - Functionalized organic layers prepared by plasma processes have complex surface chemistries. The problem of elucidating such chemistries is an extensively studied subject. One of the preponderant methods used to acquire information on specific functional groups is chemical derivatization XPS. In this communication, we focus on rather popular chemical derivatization XPS approaches, for instance, the quantification of amines with 4-trifluoromethyl benzaldehyde and of hydroxyl groups with trifluoroacetic anhydride. Although these procedures have been used for a long period by various laboratories, the use of varying protocols is obvious. Comparison of results is therefore difficult. We discuss steps toward a valid experimental procedure, in particular, the calculation of concentrations, the preparation of test samples, the pitfalls, and the shortcomings. KW - Organic coatings KW - Amine KW - Alcohol KW - Chemical derivatization KW - XPS PY - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/sia.4947 SN - 0142-2421 SN - 1096-9918 VL - 44 IS - 8 SP - 1135 EP - 1140 PB - Wiley CY - Chichester AN - OPUS4-26234 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Min, Hyegeun A1 - Girard-Lauriault, Pierre-Luc A1 - Gross, Thomas A1 - Lippitz, Andreas A1 - Dietrich, Paul A1 - Unger, Wolfgang T1 - Ambient-ageing processes in amine self-assembled monolayers on microarray slides as studied by ToF-SIMS with principal component analysis, XPS, and NEXAFS spectroscopy N2 - We investigated the ageing of amine-terminated self-assembled monolayers (amine-SAMs) on different silica substrates due to exposure to different ambient gases, pressures, and/or temperatures using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) with principal component analysis and complementary methods of surface analysis as X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS). The goal of this study is to examine the durability of primary amine groups of amine-SAMs stored in a user laboratory prior to being used as supports for biomolecule immobilization and other applications. We prepared amine-SAMs on the native oxides of silicon wafers and glass slides using 3- aminopropyl triethoxysilane, by using optimized conditions such as anhydrous organic solvent and reaction time scale of hours to avoid multilayer growth. Selected commercial amine-SAM slides have been investigated, too. When the amine-SAMs are exposed to air, oxygen incorporation occurs, followed by formation of amide groups. The formation of oxygen species due to ageing was proved by ToFSIMS, XPS, and NEXAFS findings such as CNO- secondary ion emission at m/z 42, observation of the N 1s HNC=O component peak at 400.2–400.3 eV in XPS, and, last but not least, by formation of a π*(HNC=O) resonance at 401 eV in the N K-edge X-ray absorption spectrum. It is concluded that the used multi-method approach comprising complementary ToF-SIMS, XPS, and NEXAFS analyses is well suited for a thorough study of chemical aspects of ageing phenomena of amine-SAM surfaces. KW - Amine-SAM KW - Ageing process KW - ToF-SIMS KW - NEXAFS KW - XPS PY - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-012-5862-5 SN - 1618-2642 SN - 1618-2650 VL - 403 IS - 2 SP - 613 EP - 623 PB - Springer CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-25829 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -