Hydrophobicity at the molecular scale: Characterizing the aqueous-polystyrene interface with vibrational sum-frequency generation spectroscopy

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dc.contributor.authorBevington, Arden
dc.contributor.authorUddin, Md. Mosfeq
dc.contributor.authorHore, Dennis K.
dc.date.accessioned2025-04-23T22:55:49Z
dc.date.available2025-04-23T22:55:49Z
dc.date.issued2025
dc.description.abstractInterfaces between hydrophobic polymer materials and water are ubiquitous in our everyday lives, from plastic water bottles and raincoats to cutting edge materials and drug delivery capsules. Surprisingly, the molecular-level interactions that occur at their interfaces with water are not well understood. Of particular interest is the origin of the surface charge that has been observed at these interfaces. In this work we investigate water structure and surface charge at the interface with a common hydrophobic polymer, polystyrene, using variable-angle vibrational sum-frequency generation spectroscopy (SFG). SFG is an inherently surface-specific spectroscopic technique that allows us to characterize molecular vibrations at the interface. Variable-angle SFG reveals that water molecules at the surface have a net orientation with their hydrogen atoms pointed towards the surface and show an increase in the magnitude of the surface charge as ionic strength of the solution is increased.
dc.description.reviewstatusReviewed
dc.description.scholarlevelUndergraduate
dc.description.sponsorshipJamie Cassels Undergraduate Research Awards (JCURA)
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1828/21974
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherUniversity Of Victoria
dc.subjectphysical chemistry
dc.subjectspectroscopy
dc.subjectsurface science
dc.subjectcharged interfaces
dc.titleHydrophobicity at the molecular scale: Characterizing the aqueous-polystyrene interface with vibrational sum-frequency generation spectroscopy
dc.typePoster

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