Nanostructured Morphology of Adsorption of Polyelectrolyte at the Solid/Liquid Interface Observed by Atomic Force Microscopy

Abstract

In this paper, the morphology change of various polymers at the mica –water interface, such as polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), polystryrenesulfonate (PSS), and partially hydrated polyacrylamide (HPAM) in different environments was investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM). We found that PVP molecules deposited on mica from aqueous solution appeared in stretched wormlike coils forming densely packed films. In NaCl solution, the globular molecular conformation was observed. For PSS molecules the similar results were obtained. HPAM molecules deposited on the mica surface from aqueous solution at natural pH were observed to form a nanostructured network