TiO2 thin films formation on industrial glass through self-assembly processing

Silane coupling reagent ((CH3O)(3)Si(CH2)(3)SH) was self-assembled on the industrial glass substrates to form two-dimensional organic monolayer and the terminal -SH functional group was oxidized into -SO3H groups in situ. By exploiting the chemisorption properties of the -SO3H group, titanium dioxide (TiO2) thin films were prepared by deposition in aqueous HCl solution of TiCl4 at 80 degrees C. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis showed that TiO2 thin films were successfully prepared, and atomic force microscopy (AFM) images confirmed that the films were consisted of packed TiO2 crystallites over 100 nm in size. TiO2 thin films were in excellent adherence. The synthesis of TiO2 films has a prospect in industrial application. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.