The interaction of avidin with biotin was studied on functionalized quartz surfaces terminated with 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (3-APTMS), 2,2'-(ethylenedioxy)bis(ethylenediamine) (DADOO), and fourth-generation amine-terminated polyan-lidoamine (G4-NH2) PAMAM) dendrimers with the use of Fourier transform infrared reflection-absorption spectroscopy (FT-IRRAS). In particular, the molecular recognition ability of these surfaces was quantified through FT-IRRAS in combination with the use of an alkyne dicobalt hexacarbonyl probe coupled with avidin. The degree of nonspecific adsorption of avidin was determined by exposure of the amine-terminated and/or biotinylated surfaces to solutions of biotin-saturated avidin. The results indicate that the biotinylated 3-APTMS layer exhibits a very low specific binding capacity for avidin (on the order of 0.15 pmol of avidin/cm(2)) and substantial nonspecific adsorption. Both the binding capacity and the specificity were greatly improved when the 3-APTMS layer on quartz was modified through serial chemisorption of glutaraldehyde (GA), DADOO, and/or G4-NH2 PAMAM dendrimer layers. Among these layers, the biotinylated G4-NH2 PAMAM dendrimer layer exhibited the highest capacity for avidin binding (2.02 pmol of avidin/cm(2)) with a specificity of approximately 90%. This effect can be attributed to the efficient packing/ordering of the binding dendrimer layer, leading to a more dense and better organized layer of biotin headgroups on the subsequent biotinylated surface.