Checkerboard Self-Patterning of an Ionic Liquid Film on Mercury

L. Tamam, B. M. Ocko, H. Reichert, and M. Deutsch

Phys. Rev. Lett. 106, 197801 – Published 10 May 2011

Abstract

Å-resolution studies of room temperature ionic liquid (RTIL) interfaces are scarce, in spite of their long-recognized importance for the science and many applications of RTILs. We present an Å-resolution x-ray study of a Langmuir film of an RTIL on mercury. At low (high) coverage [90 (50) $Å^{2}$ /molecule] a mono-(bi)layer of surface-parallel molecules is found. The molecules self-assemble in a lateral ionic checkerboard pattern, unlike the uniform-charge, alternate-ion layers of this RTIL at its bulk-solid interface. A 2D-smectic order is found, with molecules packed in parallel stripes, forming long-range order normal to, but none along, the stripes.

Received 24 March 2011

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.106.197801

Authors & Affiliations

L. Tamam¹, B. M. Ocko², H. Reichert³, and M. Deutsch^1,*

¹Physics Department & Institute of Nanotechnology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
²Condensed Matter Physics & Materials Sciences Department, Brookhaven National Lab, Upton New York 11973, USA
³European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, P.O. Box 220, 38043 Grenoble, France