| Abstract: | Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of four azobenzene derivatives containing a sulphonamide linkage and a thiol group were deposited on both vacuum-evaporated and sputtered gold (Au) thin films. The optically induced switching effect on the surface potential Us upon alternating irradiation with UV (centred at 360 nm) and visible (centred at 450 nm) light was investigated by the Kelvin probe technique. Changes in surface potential were in the range ΔUs=4–70 mV for SAM samples, depending on the structure of the molecule. The dependence of surface potential change and decay time upon irradiation on the structure of the Au film was observed. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
