Biological Surfaces and Thin Films Laboratory

• Biomaterials Research Laboratory
  
• Computational Biophysics
  
• Nanoparticles in Polymers

Andrew Richter, PhD

As ultra-thin biocompatible surface coatings become more important in biotechnology, specialized techniques are required to ascertain their structures and how they interact with biological materials. Of the many techniques available, two that are best suited to characterization of the structure of ultrathin organic films are ellipsometry and xray reflectivity. Ellipsometry can be used to find the index of refraction and thickness of films up to microns in thickness and can be set up in a laboratory for near instant assessment. X-ray reflectivity affords higher resolution than ellipsometry and is superior for films less than 100 Å thick, but in general is not as accessible an instrument. Ellipsometry is used to characterize the deposition process and the structure of organic films. Access to x-ray facilities at national laboratories allows examination of thin polymer and self-assembled films during growth, x-irradiation, and in situ interactions with biomaterials. With these techniques, especially in concert with atomic-scale microscopies, we can probe and design the interactions between biomaterials and solid interfaces, which are essential areas of inquiry in biomedical research.

• Ellipsometry
• X-Ray Diffraction

•  Characterization of the structure of ultra-thin organic films using ellipsometry and x-ray reflectivity