ABSTRACT
In numerous applications, it is desirable to have specific biomolecules arrayed on or tethered to a physical surface. This surface may serve as a transducer of signals by being conductive or piezoelectric, or by being small enough to change in mass or conformation upon analyte binding. Any new protein immobilization experiment is a challenge and should be undertaken only after a thorough review of the relevant recent literature. A silane is analogous to an alkane, except that in the place of a central carbon atom, it contains a Si. The value of silanes is in their ability to form uniform, essentially defect-free monolayers when applied in the liquid or vapor phase to an appropriate surface. Making a surface monolayer is easy; characterizing one can be the labor of a lifetime. Alkanethiol monolayers are about a nanometer in thickness and essentially transparent in the ultraviolet to visible.
