Interpretation BAM reflectivity

Interpreting the BAM images

Observed reflectivity is related to local orientation of hydrophobic tails.

Analyzer set at d_r = 60º.

Tail orientation Reflectivity vs phi

The reflectivity depends on the physical parameters of the monolayer: tail length, tail polar angle (q), tail dielectric tensor (usually assumed uniaxial anisotropy), tail azimuthal angle (j), and on the details of the observation: wavelength of light, angle of incidence, and orientation of analyzer and polarizer. Areas with high reflectivity appear bright, and areas with low reflectivity appear dark.

A mathematica notebook to calculate the reflectivity as a function of all those parameters is found here.

	Analyzer set at d_r = 60º.


The reflectivity depends on the physical parameters of the monolayer: tail length, tail polar angle (q), tail dielectric tensor (usually assumed uniaxial anisotropy), tail azimuthal angle (j), and on the details of the observation: wavelength of light, angle of incidence, and orientation of analyzer and polarizer. Areas with high reflectivity appear bright, and areas with low reflectivity appear dark. A mathematica notebook to calculate the reflectivity as a function of all those parameters is found here.