Photoprocesses on Fractal Surfaces

This chapter discusses photoprocesses on fractal surfaces. The initial interest in fractal geometry stemmed mainly from the striking similarity between computer-generated objects, as formed by applying the rules of this geometry, and “real” objects as found in many natural or man-made objects. The algorithms used for creating the fractal objects are usually quite simple and involve an iterative construction procedure. Because of this iterative procedure, the objects thus obtained have the property of being self-similar—that is, the various magnifications of the object look similar. The chapter describes the use of molecules as yardsticks. The first yardstick for the resolution analysis discussed, is the molecule interacting with the surface. For an irregular surface, the smaller the molecule is, the finer are the surface details it can probe and the larger will be the apparent surface area, A, as determined from monolayer coverage. Rather than measuring area with a set of molecules, one can perform an equivalent resolution analysis—namely, to take only one yardstick and to measure the area of the object as a function of its size.