High-resolution and high-repetition-rate vibrational sum-frequency generation spectroscopy of one- and two-component phosphatidylcholine monolayers

We present broadband vibrational sum-frequency generation (VSFG) spectra of Langmuir-Blodgett monolayers of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC), 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC), and different mixtures of them as model systems of pulmonary surfactants. The systematic study explored the dependence of the vibrational spectra as a function of surface tension and mixture ratio in various polarization combinations. The extremely short acquisition time and the high spectral resolution of our recently developed spectrometer helped minimize sample degradation under ambient conditions throughout the duration of the measurement and allowed the detection of previously unseen vibrational bands with unprecedented signal-to-noise ratio. The dramatically improved capability to record reliable vibrational spectra together with the label-free nature of the VSFG method provides direct access to native lipid structure and dynamics directly in the monolayer. The resulting data deliver quantitative information for structural analysis of multi-component phospholipid monolayers and may aid in the development of new synthetic pulmonary surfactants.