Scanning electrochemical microscopy determination of organic soluble MPC electron-transfer rates

作者：Peterson Rachel R; Cliffel David E^*

来源：Langmuir, 2006, 22(25): 10307-10314.

DOI：10.1021/la061183r

In this paper, we describe a novel method for measuring the forward heterogeneous electron-transfer rate constant (k(f)) through the thiol monolayer of gold monolayer protected clusters (MPCs) in solution using scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM). Applying the equations for mixed mass-transfer and electron-transfer processes, we develop a new formula using only the diffusion coefficient and the tip radius and use it as part of a new method for evaluating SECM approach curves. This method is applied to determine the electron-transfer rates from a series of SECM approach curves for monodisperse hexanethiol MPCs and for polydisperse hexanethiol, octanethiol, decanethiol, dodecanethiol, and 2-phenyethylthiol gold MPCs. Our results show that as the alkanethiol length increases the rate of electron transfer decreases in a manner consistent with the previously proposed tunneling mechanism for the electron transfer in MPCs. However, the effective tunneling coefficient,,, is found to be only 0.41 angstrom(-1) for alkanethiol passivated MPCs compared to typical values of 1.1 angstrom(-1) for alkanethiols as self-assembled monolayers on two-dimensional gold substrates. Similar SECM approach curve results for Pt and Au MPCs indicate that the electrontransfer rate is dependent mostly on the composition of the thiol layer and not on differences in the core metal.

• 出版日期2006-12-5