INVESTIGATION OF MOLECULAR CHAINS STRUCTURE OF POLYIMIDE LANGMUIR-BLODGETT-FILMS BY ATOMIC-FORCE MICROSCOPY

Atomic force microscopy was applied to investigate the microscopic mol ecular structures of polyimide Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films. The polyi mide chains of a monolayer film on graphite were observed. It was foun d that the polyimide LB film with a groovy surface occurs due to the o rientation of polyimide chains. By horizontal deposition the polyimide chains show a zigzag structure, while by vertical deposition the poly imide chains show a straight-line structure. Moreover, the polyimide c hains are always oriented along the direction of deposition. It is sug gested that the polyimide chains are oriented by the LB technique.