SILVER METAL LIQUID-LIKE FILMS (MELLFS) - THE EFFECT OF SURFACTANTS

This is a study of the effect of surfactants on the production and stabilization of silver metal liquidlike films (MELLFs). The main role of the surfactant is in stabilizing the silver MELLFs and improving their properties (reflectivity, "fluidity"). A variety of different surfactants were found to be active, and from those investigated, anionic fluoroalkyl surfactants seem to be the most effective. In the case of anionic surfactants the countercation has a significant effect on the silver MELLF, especially if it is a surface-active agent in itself. We report on the effect of the surfactants on the interfacial tension and their effect on the measured reflectivities of the MELLFs and discuss the results in the context of the interfacial colloidal model of silver MELLFs.