Anisotropic Orientational Motion of Molecular Adsorbates at the Air-Water Interface

The ultrafast orientational motions of coumarin 314 (C314) adsorbed at the air/water interface were investigated by time-resolved surface second harmonic generation (TRSHG). The theory and method of using TRSHG to detect both out-of-plane and in-plane orientational motions are discussed. The interfacial solute motions were found to be anisotropic, with differing out-of-plane and in-plane reorientation time constants. This report presents the first direct observation of in-plane orientational motion of a molecule (C314) at the air/water interface using TRSHG. The in-plane reorientation time constant is 600 ( 40 ps. The out-of-plane reorientation time constant is 350 ( 20 ps. The out-of-plane orientational motion of C314 is similar to the previous results on rhodamine 6G at the air/water interface which indicated increased interfacial friction compared with bulk aqueous solution. The surface reorientation times are 2-3 times slower than the bulk isotropic orientational diffusion time.