X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) are used to characterize the interface between poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) and an aluminium oxyhydroxide (AlOOH) surface. Reaction of the PAA carboxylic acid functionality with hydroxyl groups at the surface of the oxide to form a monodentate carboxylate complex C(O)OAl was identified by FTIR. The degree of conversion of the acid to the salt at the interface was estimated to be 40% from the XPS analysis of PAA overlayers of varying thickness. An equivalent reaction was identified at the interface between AlOOH and a monolayer of strongly bonded plasma‐polymerized acrylic acid (ppAAc) that remained after solvent washing. The resistance of the monolayer of ppAAc to solvent washing was attributed to the formation of interfacial carboxylate complexes with the AlOOH surface. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Monolayer and multilayers of ferroelectric liquid crystals (FLC) obtained by the Langmuir-Blodgett (L-B) technique on the water subphase were characterized by surface pressure measurements and by polarization modulated infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS). The specific surface selection rules on the water surface and the high sensitivity of the PM-IRRAS method allow the estimation of the microscopic molecular organization of Langmuir films. Moreover, five layers of FLC were successfully transferred onto CaF 2 and gold solid substrates and were studied by conventional Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and by the PM-IRRAS method. Finally, the influence of the temperature on the structural arrangement of L-B films has been discussed.