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Introduction And History Of Langmuir Monolayers ( Lms )

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Introduction and History of Langmuir Monolayers
The study of Langmuir Monolayers (LMs) has greatly increased in the last few decades, which has furthered our understanding as well as appreciation for these simple yet valuable structures. This is partly due to LMs being recognized as extremely important tools in the study of complex subjects such as, but not limited to: biochemistry, biomedical research, and polymerization. Although each of these subjects is unique in its own discipline, they all gain further insight with development of new molecular structures, to which LMs provide the perfect template. If LMs were able to form unique structures on demand, this could greatly improve the biomedical field and possible lead to paradigm shifts …show more content…

Franklin decided to test this theory while on another trip with one of his colleagues (1). He and colleague passed by a small pond which was producing waves on the surface (1). This gave the water a rippled appearance, an ideal testing situation for Franklin. He dropped a small amount of oil on the water surface and was shocked to find that the oil had an immediate calming effect on a large portion of the water’s surface(1). Additionally, he noted that the oil spread itself over a large area as opposed to staying in one isolated spot (1). What Franklin had documented was the creation of what can now be referred to as a LM as well as noting the effects of hydrophobicity on a hydrophilic surface. Other great scientists who continued Franklins work in this field were Lord Raleigh and Agnes Pockels, both of who came from vastly different backgrounds, but recognized the importance of being able to calculate a molecules thickness (1). They later discovered methods of calculating the thickness of the oil that was dispensed on water by examining the drop-in surface tension when a certain volume of oil was deposited on a water surface (1). Lastly, the most notable scientist in the field of surface science and the founding expert of Langmuir Monolayers, Irving Langmuir. He was a famous American chemist and physicist and another Nobel Laureate. The Langmuir Monolayer and Trough is named after him.

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