Self-assembled silver nanoparticles monolayers on mica-AFM, SEM, and electrokinetic characteristics

A monodisperse silver particle suspension was produced by a chemical reduction method in an aqueous medium using sodium citrate. The average particle size determined by dynamic light scattering (DLS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) was 28.5 nm. The DLS measurements confirmed that the suspension was stable for the ionic strength up to 3 × 10−2 M NaCl. The electrophoretic mobility measurements revealed that the electrokinetic charge of particles was negative for pH range 3–10, assuming −50 e for pH = 9 and 0.01 M NaCl. Using the suspension, silver particle monolayers on mica modified by poly(allylamine hydrochloride) were produced under diffusion-controlled transport. Monolayer coverage, quantitatively determined by AFM and SEM, was regulated within broad limits by adjusting the nanoparticle deposition time. This allowed one to uniquely express the zeta potential of silver monolayers, determined by the in situ streaming potential measurements, in terms of particle coverage. Such dependencies obtained for various ionic strengths and pH, were successfully interpreted in terms of the 3D electrokinetic model. A universal calibrating graph was produced in this way, enabling one to determine silver monolayer coverage from the measured value of the streaming potential. Our experimental data prove that it is feasible to produce uniform and stable silver particle monolayers of well-controlled coverage and defined electrokinetic properties.