The need to modify and functionalize surfaces — without otherwise altering the geometry and bulk properties of the substrate material — is a common problem in materials engineering. An important solution strategy is coating with multicomposite thin films. This book provides a detailed survey of the new technology of adsorption from solution for the fabrication of molecularly ordered multicomposite films in order to replace and expand on the well-known Langmuir—Blodgett technology and to open the field of molecular self-assembly to materials and biosciences. Multilayer Thin Films offers a comprehensive and effective review of this burgeoning technology.

From the Foreword: “Over the last ten years, scientists from varying backgrounds have rallied around a versatile new method for the synthesis of thin films. Because the layer-by-layer assembly method provides opportunities for creative design and application of function-specific films, the field has experienced an initial period of exponential growth. This book, the first on the topic, contains many insightful contributions from leaders in the field that will enable novices and experts to understand the promises and premises of multilayers...Readers with interests in self-assembled systems, supramolecular chemistry, nano-composites or polymers will find themselves fascinated by the diversity of topics herein...”

Target Audience: Scientists from a wide range of disciplines who seek to integrate several different functional entities in a single device.

Table of Contents:

Polyelectrolyte Multilayers, an Overview

Fundamentals of Polyelectrolyte Complexes in Solution and the Bulk

Polyelectrolyte Adsorption and Multilayer Formation

Charge Balance and Transport in Polyelectrolyte Multilayers

pH-Controlled Fabrication of Polyelectrolyte Multilayers: Assembly and Applications

Recent Progress in the Surface Sol—Gel Process and Protein Multilayers

Internally Structured Polyelectrolyte Multilayers

Layer-by-Layer Assembly of Nanoparticles and Nanocolloids: Intermolecular Interactions, Structure and Materials Perspectives

Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembled Polyelectrolyte and Nanoplatelets

Chemistry Directed Deposition via Electrostatic and Secondary Interactions: A Nonlithographic Approach to Patterned Polyelectrolyte Multilayer Systems

Layered Nanoarchitecture Based on Electro- and Photo-Active Building Blocks

Coated Colloids: Preparation, Characterization, Assembly and Utilization

Smart Capsules

Multilayers on Solid Planar Substrates: From Structure to Function

Functional Layer-by-Layer Assemblies with Photo- and Electrochemical Response and Selective Transport of Small Molecules and Ions

Self-Assembly and Characterization of Electro-Optic Materials

Controlling the Ion-Permeability of Layered Polyelectrolyte Films and Membranes

Index