Oriented growth of the metal organic framework Cu3(BTC)2(H2O)3•xH2O tunable with functionalized self-assembled monolayers

The tunable oriented growth of thin films of the porous framework HKUST-1 (Cu-3(C9H3O6)(2)(H2O)(3)center dot xH(2)O) on different functionalized self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) is demonstrated. Films grown on carboxylate-terminated self-assembled monolayers are highly oriented along the [100] direction, while alcohol-terminated surfaces induce a completely different orientation along the [111] direction. Homogeneous but less oriented thin films are also obtained on methyl-terminated SAMs. A combination of X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy was used to document the film growth on the self-assembled monolayers and to follow the morphological evolution of the crystalline phases.