Study of electron transfer in ferrocene-labeled collagen-like peptides

This study describes the electron transfer (ET) phenomenon through a series of (Pro-Hyp-Gly) repeat units containing collagen mimics. The peptides contain redox-active ferrocene (Fc) and thiol-functionalized cystein (Cys) at the N- and C-terminals, respectively. Peptide films were prepared on gold surfaces and characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ellipsometry, and Fourier transform-reflection absorption infrared spectroscopy (FT-RAIRS). Electrochemical investigations of the films showed a linear but weakly distance-dependent ET. The importance of H-bonding was realized, and the possibility of a conformationally gated ET mechanism has been discussed.