Increasing the Diameter of Vertically Aligned, Hexagonally Ordered Pores in Mesoporous Silica Thin Films

The variation in pore size in mesoporous films produced by electrochemically assisted self-assembly (EASA) with the surfactant chain length is described. EASA produces a hexagonal array of pores perpendicular to the substrate surface by using an applied potential to organize cationic surfactants and the resultant current to drive condensation in a silica sol. Here, we show that a range of pore sizes between 2 and 5 nm in diameter is available with surfactants of the form [Me3NCnH2n+1]Br, with alkyl chain lengths between C-14 and (C2)4. The film quality, pore order, pore size, and pore accessibility are probed with a range of techniques.

Automated summary

The variation in pore size in mesoporous films produced by electrochemically assisted self-assembly (EASA) with the surfactant chain length is described. It is found that a range of pore sizes between 2 and 5 nm in diameter is available with surfactants of the form [Me3NCnH2n+1]Br, with alkyl chain lengths between C-14 and (C2)4.