Assembly and Functionalization of Supramolecular Structures Studied by Luminescence Techniques

摘要

Species of colloidal dimensions like micelles, inverted micelles or microemulsions are formed in aqueous or non-aqueous media when a certain concentration of monomers also called tensides, amphiphiles or detergents, has been exceeded. This concentration is called the CMC or critical micellar concentration. This aggregation of monomers is a result of the typical structure of a detergent molecule, that combines a hydrophilic part )the polar headgroup) with a hydrophobic part (the apolar tail). The size and shape of the aggregates formed is strongly dependent upon the molecular structure of the monomers that are building up such a micelle and even so upon the medium used and upon the presence or absence of additives. One of the most important features, which is also the subject of study in this project; is the stability of the aggregates formed, and more especially the factors that account for the differences in structure and stability of the known inverse micellar system. Within the framework of this project new detergents were synthesized and probe/quencher systems, used for fluorescence studies, are evaluated to see in how far they can provide a better understanding of the aggregation behaviour and of the structure aspects that determine aggregate stabilization.