Characterization of self‐assembled phenyl and benzyl isothiocyanate thin films on Au surfaces

Structures of self‐assembled monolayers (SAMs) prepared from benzyl isothiocyanate (BZIT) and phenyl isothiocyanate (PHIT) were comparatively investigated by means of surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) on gold nanoparticle surfaces. Both the molecules are assumed to have upright geometries binding via the sulfur atom, from the SERS spectral features. The broad and split bands at ～2100 cm^?1 could be ascribed to the combination band ν_9a + ν₁₂ of the phenyl ring vibrations through a Fermi‐resonance interaction with the ν₃(NCS) band in the neat‐liquid state. Such broad bands became quite symmetric upon adsorption on Au. UV‐vis absorbance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry (CV) were used to compare the kinetics of the formation of SAMs on gold. Our results suggest that BZIT should have a relatively faster self‐assembly than PHIT, as indicated from signal decrease in the CV graph, which suggests a more vertical stance for BZIT in line with Raman measurements. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.