Near-UV-Induced Rapid Formation of Compact Self-Assembled Organophosphonate Monolayers on H-Terminated Si(111) Surfaces

Efficient control of interface chemistry can lead to better tunability of electronic properties along the interface, which is at the central focus for many scientific and technological applications. Recently self-assembled organophosphonate mono-layers (SAMs) on various oxide surfaces found increasing attention in electrical and sensor applications due to their high stability and reproducibility. Here we demonstrate a novel, near-UV-initiated direct modification of H-terminated silicon surfaces with different alkylphosphonic acids. This grafting produces densely packed organic monolayers within an hour and can be performed under catalyst-free conditions. The SAMs show high hydrolytic stability at pH 3 and 11.