The early phase in the aggregation process of the Alzheimer's peptide Aβ(12-28) with both protected and unprotected ends was studied by time-resolved infrared spectroscopy and circular dichroism spectroscopy. Aggregation in the time-resolved experiments was initiated by a rapid pH drop caused by the photolysis of 1-(2-nitrophenyl)ethyl sulfate (caged sulfate). The infrared spectra indicate aggregates from both versions of the Aβ(12-28) peptide. [corrected] They form fast (within 60 ms), presumably from initial aggregates, and their spectral signature is consistent with a β-barrel structure. The other type arises relatively slowly from unstructured monomers on the seconds-to-minutes time scale and forms at lower pH than the first type. These β sheets are antiparallel, planar, and large and show an absorption band at 1622 cm(-1) that shifts to 1617 cm(-1) in 12 min with most of the shift occurring in 10 s.