Surface Control of a Photoresponsive Self-Assembled Monolayer and Selective Deposition of Ag Nanoparticulate Ink

A highly hydrophobic self-assembled monolayer (SAM) with high photosensitivity to soft UV (λ = 365 nm) was formed on thermally surface-oxidized silicon wafers by a silane coupling agent bearing a 2-nitrobenzyl carbamate moiety. Very smooth SAM was obtained by the use of 1,3-bis(trifluoromethyl)benzene as a solvent. Photopatterning of the SAM was carried out by irradiation with soft UV at 2 J cm−2 (80 s) in acetone under a photomask. Selective deposition of Ag nanoparticulate ink by spin coating on the resulting patterned surface afforded a well-defined 10 µm line and space pattern. Subsequent photodeprotection to generate amino groups enabled the space regions to be selectively modified with fluorescent dye bearing a succinimidyl ester moiety.