To help develop metal binding molecules for nanoscale electronics, sensors, and biomedical devices, a team based in the USA has investigated the adsorption of amino acids and surfactants onto a gold surface. Using molecular dynamics simulations, the team investigated the mechanism and strength of the interactions. They say that the adsorption strength correlates with the degree of coordination of polarizable atoms (O, N, C) to multiple epitaxial sites, and therefore, the molecular size and geometry rather than the specific chemistry determine the adsorption energy.
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