Mineral surface - organic matter interactions: basics and applications

The ability to control the binding of biological and organic molecules to a crystal surface is central in several fields; for example, in biotechnology, catalysis, molecular microarrays, biosensors preparation and environmental sciences. The nano-morphology and nanostructure at the surface may have physico-chemical properties that are very different from those of the underlying mineral substrate. Recent developments in scanning probe microscopy (SPM) have widened the spectrum of possible investigations that can be performed at the nanometric level on the surface of minerals. They range from the study of physical properties such as surface potential, electric field topological determination, Brønsted-Lowry site distributions, to chemical and spectroscopic analysis in air, in liquid or in gaseous environments. After an introduction to SPM modes of operation and new SPM-based technological developments, we will present recent examples of applications in the study of interactions between organic matter and mineral surface and report on the advances in knowledge that have been made by the use of scanning probe microscopy.