Microstructured π-Conjugated Organic Monolayer Covalently Attached to Silicon

A phenylacetylene (PA) monolayer was prepared on hydrogen-terminated silicon. Through vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) lithography, micropatterned PA-monolayer/SiO 2 samples were subsequently fabricated. The surface potential and electrical conductivity of the microstructured PA monolayers were examined by Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) and conductive atomic force microscopy (C-AFM), respectively. KPFM measurements showed that the PA-monolayer surface regions were negatively charged. C-AFM measurements demonstrated that, in the microdomains, the PA-monolayer regions had a higher conductivity than the SiO 2 regions fabricated by VUV lithography. This is the first report of electronic property images of a monolayer directly attached to silicon being demonstrated in microregions.