Publications

Atomic layer deposition of l -alanine polypeptide

Fu, Yaqin; Li, Binsong; Jiang, Ying B.; Dunphy, Darren R.; Tsai, Andy; Tam, Siu Y.; Fan, Hongyou; Zhang, Hongxia; Rogers, David; Rempe, Susan R.; Atanassov, Plamen; Cecchi, Joseph L.; Brinker, C.J.

l-Alanine polypeptide thin films were synthesized via atomic layer deposition (ALD). Instead of using an amino acid monomer as the precursor, an l-alanine amino acid derivatized with a protecting group was used to prevent self-polymerization, increase the vapor pressure, and allow linear cycle-by-cycle growth emblematic of ALD. The successful deposition of a conformal polypeptide film has been confirmed by FTIR, TEM, and Mass Spectrometry, and the ALD process has been extended to polyvaline.