Sub-nanometer resolution imaging with amplitude-modulation atomic force microscopy in liquid (2016)
Journal Article
Miller, E., Trewby, W., Farokh Payam, A., Piantanida, L., Cafolla, C., & Voïtchovsky, K. (2016). Sub-nanometer resolution imaging with amplitude-modulation atomic force microscopy in liquid. Journal of Visualized Experiments, Article e54924. https://doi.org/10.3791/54924

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has become a well-established technique for nanoscale imaging of samples in air and in liquid. Recent studies have shown that when operated in amplitude-modulation (tapping) mode, atomic or molecular-level resolution ima... Read More about Sub-nanometer resolution imaging with amplitude-modulation atomic force microscopy in liquid.

Thermally-nucleated self-assembly of water and alcohol into stable structures at hydrophobic interfaces (2016)
Journal Article
Voïtchovsky, K., Giofrè, D., Segura, J., Stellacci, F., & Ceriotti, M. (2016). Thermally-nucleated self-assembly of water and alcohol into stable structures at hydrophobic interfaces. Nature Communications, 7, Article 13064. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms13064

At the interface with solids, the mobility of liquid molecules tends to be reduced compared with bulk, often resulting in increased local order due to interactions with the surface of the solid. At room temperature, liquids such as water and methanol... Read More about Thermally-nucleated self-assembly of water and alcohol into stable structures at hydrophobic interfaces.

Effect of temperature on the viscoelastic properties of nano-confined liquid mixtures (2016)
Journal Article
Voïtchovsky, K. (2016). Effect of temperature on the viscoelastic properties of nano-confined liquid mixtures. Nanoscale, 8(40), 17472-17482. https://doi.org/10.1039/c6nr05879e

The behaviour of fluids confined in nanoscale gaps plays a central role in molecular science and nanofluidics, with applications ranging from biological function to multiscale printing, osmosis and filtration, lab-on-chip technology and friction redu... Read More about Effect of temperature on the viscoelastic properties of nano-confined liquid mixtures.

Molecular Resolution in situ Imaging of Spontaneous Graphene Exfoliation (2016)
Journal Article
Elbourne, A., McLean, B., Voïtchovsky, K., Warr, G., & Atkin, R. (2016). Molecular Resolution in situ Imaging of Spontaneous Graphene Exfoliation. Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters, 7(16), 3118-3122. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpclett.6b01323

All reported methods of graphene exfoliation require external energy input, most commonly from sonication,1 shaking,2 or stirring.3 The reverse process—aggregation of single or few layer graphene sheets—occurs spontaneously in most solvents. This mak... Read More about Molecular Resolution in situ Imaging of Spontaneous Graphene Exfoliation.

Swelling Behavior and Nanomechanical Properties of (Peptide-Modified) Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) and Poly(poly(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) Brushes (2016)
Journal Article
Desseaux, S., Hinestrosa, J., Schüwer, N., Lokitz, B., Ankner, J., Kilbey, S., …Klok, H. (2016). Swelling Behavior and Nanomechanical Properties of (Peptide-Modified) Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) and Poly(poly(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) Brushes. Macromolecules, 49(12), 4609-4618. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.macromol.6b00881

Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) and poly(poly(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) (PPEGMA) brushes represent a class of thin, surface-tethered polymer films that have been extensively used e.g. to generate non-biofouling surfaces or as model sys... Read More about Swelling Behavior and Nanomechanical Properties of (Peptide-Modified) Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) and Poly(poly(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) Brushes.

Sub-nanometre mapping of the aquaporin-water interface with multifrequency atomic force microscopy (2016)
Journal Article
Ricci, M., Quinlan, R., & Voïtchovsky, K. (2017). Sub-nanometre mapping of the aquaporin-water interface with multifrequency atomic force microscopy. Soft Matter, 13(1), 187-195. https://doi.org/10.1039/c6sm00751a

Aquaporins are integral membrane proteins that regulate the transport of water and small molecules in and out of the cell. In eye lens tissue, circulation of water, ions and metabolites is ensured by a microcirculation system in which aquaporin-0 (AQ... Read More about Sub-nanometre mapping of the aquaporin-water interface with multifrequency atomic force microscopy.

Visualising the molecular alteration of the calcite (104) – water interface by sodium nitrate (2016)
Journal Article
Hofmann, S., Voïtchovsky, K., Spijker, P., Schmidt, M., & Stumpf, T. (2016). Visualising the molecular alteration of the calcite (104) – water interface by sodium nitrate. Scientific Reports, 6, Article 21576. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep21576

The reactivity of calcite, one of the most abundant minerals in the earth’s crust, is determined by the molecular details of its interface with the contacting solution. Recently, it has been found that trace concentrations of NaNO3 severely affect ca... Read More about Visualising the molecular alteration of the calcite (104) – water interface by sodium nitrate.

Buffering agents modify the hydration landscape at charged interfaces (2016)
Journal Article
Trewby, W., Livesy, D., & Voïtchovsky, K. (2016). Buffering agents modify the hydration landscape at charged interfaces. Soft Matter, 12(9), 2642-2651. https://doi.org/10.1039/c5sm02445e

Buffering agents are widely used to stabilise the pH of solutions in soft matter and biological sciences. They are typically composed of weak acids and bases mixed in an aqueous solution, and can interact electrostatically with charged surfaces such... Read More about Buffering agents modify the hydration landscape at charged interfaces.