Effect of salt concentration on the nanostructure of weak polyacid brush in the amphiphilic polymer monolayer at the air/water interface.

The effect of salt concentration on the nanostructure of a spread monolayer of ionic amphiphilic diblock copolymer, (diethylsilacyclobutane)m-b-(methacrylic acid)n, at the air-water interface was directly investigated by in situ X-ray reflectivity and neutron reflectivity techniques. Previously, we had found that a poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) hydrophilic layer under the water was not in the form of a simple polyelectrolyte brush but consisted of a dense carpet upper layer and a diffuse brush lower layer when the hydrophilic chain was long enough. Here we observed this double layer formation in the monolayer in aqueous NaCl solution at a constant surface pressure. The effect of salt added to the subphase differed with the salt concentrations, that is, below or above 0.1 M. In the presence of NaCl up to 0.1 M, both the hydrophobic layer and brush layer thicknesses decreased. On the other hand, both of them increased in the presence of NaCl above 0.1 M. Also, the carpet layer thickness was almost constant independent of the salt concentration. In addition, the brush top roughness showed a maximum in the presence of 0.1 M NaCl. The increase of the charge number on the PMAA chain and the screening effect of the Coulomb interaction by added salt ions were considered to be responsible for these phenomena.