Chemistry Letters, Vol.29, No.2, 164-165, 2000
Atomic force microscopy of photolysis of azobisisobutyronitrile in the solid state
The formation of regular nanostructures by photolysis of azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) in the solid state is investigated using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and known crystal packing data. AFM reveals that the crystal face (001) of AIBN yields both craters and volcanoes. All the experimental results are correlated with the crystal structure. Molecular interpretation of the AFM features of AIBN is given.