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Abstract
Luminescence spectroscopy provides a unique set of tools for the study of micellar systems. Variations in emission and excitation spectra of fluorescent probes may be used to assess the onset of micellization, while fluorescence lifetime, anisotropy, sensitization, and quenching measurements have made it possible to determine important micellar characteristics. Thus, critical micelle concentrations; micellar aggregation numbers; shapes, sizes, and structures of micelles; and micellar microviscosities have been determined. Work has been carried out with both normal and reverse micelles, and the influence of various solution-borne species on these aggregates has been evaluated through fluorescence and phosphorescence measurements.
For the analytical chemist, it is of considerable practical importance that many luminescent compounds exhibit enhanced or changed emission characteristics in solutions of detergent micelles. Intensity enhancements in excess of two orders of magnitude may be encountered in fluorescence analyses when micellar media are used. In addition, the micro-organized environment can provide conditions that make room-temperature phosphorescence possible. In the case of chemiluminescence, the micellar phase can be used to circumvent mismatches in solution conditions required by sequential reactions involved in these processes. Micellar systems may be used in fluorescence sensitization and quenching measurements to provide analytical possibilities that are otherwise unavailable.