Surface molecular structure of self-assembled alkanethiols evidenced by UPS, Synchrotron Radiation and HREELS

UPS, Synchrotron Radiation and HREELS data on self-assembled alkanethiols are reported as a contribution to a general effort to assess the potential of electron spectroscopies in the elucidation of the primary and secondary structure of organic surfaces. The valence and vibrational spectra of linear alkane chains, cyclic structures and folded chains are clearly different, notwithstanding their closely related chemical nature. These results evidence the fact that UPS, Synchrotron Radiation at the Cooper minimum of the 5d orbitals of the gold substrate, and HREELS are of potential use to extract information on the molecular structure on the top layers of organic films.