Atomic-beam scattering experiments using n-alkanethiol and ω-functionalized alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on gold are employed to explore the dynamics of gas-surface energy exchange in collisions with model organic surfaces. The studies are performed by directing a nearly monoenergetic beam of 80 kJ/mol Ar atoms onto a particular SAM at an incident angle of 30° with respect to the surface normal and recording the time-of-flight distributions for the atoms as they scatter from the surface at a final angle of 30°. Among the monolayers studied, long-chain CH3-terminated SAMs are found to be the most effective at dissipating the translational energy of impinging atoms. For alkanethiols with greater than seven total carbon atoms (HS(CH2)n>6CH3), we find that, for specular scattering conditions, over 80% of the incident energy is transferred to the surface and that over 60% of the impinging atoms approach thermal equilibrium with the surface before scattering back into the gas phase. In contrast to CH3-terminated monolayers, SAMs constructed from hydrogen-bonding alkanethiols: HS(CH2)11OH, HS(CH2)10COOH, and HS(CH2)11NH2, exhibit characteristics of more rigid collision partners. The Ar atoms transfer about 77% of their energy to these surfaces with only 43% of the atoms reaching thermal or near thermal equilibrium before recoiling. Further comparisons of mixed OH- and CH3-terminated SAMs and alkene-terminated SAMs suggest that intramonolayer hydrogen bonding of terminal functional groups may play an important role in determining the extent of energy transfer and thermalization.

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Zero valent Cu polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimer nanocomposites were synthesized using UV irradiation starting from the aqueous Cu(II)/dendrimer system. The size of the nanoparticles is strongly dependent on the generation of the dendrimers and the pH of the solution. Larger nanoparticles are obtained with higher generation dendrimers, as well as in more basic solution. EPR spectra show that the sites bonded to the Cu(II) ion are significantly different at different pH values. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations have been used to predict the structures and EPR spectra of the Cu(II)-dendrimer complexes. At pH ) 3, the hydrated ion complexes Cu(H 2 O) 6 2+ or Cu(H 2 O) 5 2+ are present, as expected and reported previously. At pH ) 7.8, a chelating complex with two tertiary amine sites with or without two amide oxygen sites is present. At pH ) 11, the Cu(II) ion binds to either the primary amine and amide oxygen sites on a single branch or to two tertiary amines and four amide oxygen sites on all four branches. Our results show the importance of the amide sites in Cu(II)-dendrimer complexes in neutral and basic solutions.