Laser desorption ion trap mass spectrometry of self-assembled monolayers

It is demonstrated that laser desorption ion trap mass spectrometry (LD-ITMS) can be successfully applied to the chemical analysis of a monolayer of adsorbates on a solid surface. Negative ion spectra obtained from LD-ITMS of self-assembled monolayers adsorbed from solutions of alkanethiols (CH₃(CH₂)_nSH with N = 5, 9, and 15) onto polycrystalline gold surfaces displayed clear ion peaks corresponding to the sulfonate adsorbate species. Sulfonate ions with the general formula CH₃(CH₂)_nSO⁻₃ were detected at m/z 165, 221, and 305, respectively, and were derived from the partial oxidation of the corresponding alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers. Little fragmentation and no clustering was observed in these mass spectra. These results indicate that the sensitivity of LD-ITMS is sufficient to allow its application to a wide array of problems in surface science.