This thesis deals with the use of electric fields for evaluation and control of chemical systems. An electric field can result in the flow of charge across an interface between a metal and a solution, by means of chemical reactions. This interplay between electricity and chemistry, i.e. electrochemistry, is a field of crucial importance both within research and industry. Applications based on electrochemical principles encompass such diverse areas as batteries and fuel cells, pH electrodes, and the glucose monitor used by people suffering from diabetes.A major part of the present work concerns the use of static electric fields in solutions containing a non-contacted metal surface. In such a setup it is possible to control the extent of electrochemical reactions at different positions on the metal. This allows the formation and evaluation of various types of gradients on electrodes, via indirectly induced electrochemical reactions. This approach is a new and simple way of forming for instance molecular gradients on conducting surfaces. These are very advantageous in biomimetic research, because a gradient contains a huge amount of discrete combinations of for example two molecules….
Contents
1 General introduction
2 Electrochemistry
2.1 Introduction to electrochemical reactions
2.2 The electrical double layer
2.3 Electrochemical cells and cell resistance
2.4 Mass transfer and the diffusion layer
2.5 Voltammetry
2.6 Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy
2.6.1 Theory
2.6.2 General applications
2.7 Bipolar electrochemistry
2.8 Limitations of electrochemistry
3 Imaging optical methods and electrochemistry
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Surface plasmon resonance
3.2.1 Theory
3.2.2 SPR and electrochemistry
3.3 Ellipsometry
3.3.1 Theory
3.3.2 Ellipsometry and electrochemistry
4 Electrode surface design and analysis
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Materials and methods
4.3 Surface gradients
5 Alternating electric fields for chemical analysis
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Practical considerations
5.3 Applications
6 Future outlook
Bibliography
Paper I
Paper II
Paper III
Paper IV
Paper V
Paper VI
Author: Ulrich, Christian
Source: Linköping University
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