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Abstract: A series of continuous, crack-free, highly ordered amino-functionalized mesoporous silica thin films have been directly synthesized by co-condensation of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) in the presence of cationic CH3(CH2)15N+(CH3)3Br− (CTAB), nonionic C16H33(OCH2CH2)10OH (Brij-56) or triblock copolymer H(OCH2CH2)20(OCH(CH3)CH2)70(OCH2CH2)20)OH (P123) surfactant species under acidic conditions by sol–gel dip-coating. The molar ration of APTES/(TEOS+APTES) in the starting sol attains a value of 0.4. The effect of the sol aging on the mesostructure of thin films is systematically studied, and the optimal sol aging time is obtained for different surfactant systems. The amino-functionalized mesoporous silica thin films exhibit long-range ordering of 2D hexagonal (p6mm) and 3D cubic (Fm3m) pore arrays of size range from 2.2 to 8.3nm following surfactants extraction as demonstrated by XRD, TEM and physical adsorption techniques. Based on BET surface area and weight loss, the surface coverage of amino-groups for thin films prepared using different surfactants is calculated to be 3.2 and above amino-groups per nm2, which is very useful and promising for incorporating inorganic ions and biomolecules into these mesoporous silica materials. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) templated mesoporous silica thin films were deposited on glass slides by evaporation-induced self-assembly (EISA) process using a dip-coating method. The effects of sol aging on the mesophase structure of the thin films organization were investigated. Identification of the structures was accomplished by coupling X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscope (TEM) investigations, and corresponding sol was characterized by 29Si solution state nuclear magnetic resonance (29Si NMR) and UV–Vis spectrophotometer for studying the mesophase structure evolution. Results indicate that sol aging has great effects on the mesophase structure of the films organization, which includes degree of order and phase transformation of mesoporous silica thin films. To obtain a better understanding of the effects of sol aging on the mesophase structure, the theories of apparent mass fractal dimension and charge density matching were introduced to explain the self-assembly process. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]