Direct Evidence for Highly Organized Networks of Circular Surface Micelles of Surfactant at the Air−Water Interface

We report the first direct evidence for the formation of circular surface micelles (hemimicelles) on the surface of water. These highly monodisperse 30 nm hemimicelles, made from a semifluorinated alkane deposited as a Langmuir monolayer, form organized hexagonal arrays as determined by small-angle X-ray diffraction conducted directly on the water surface at grazing incidence.