(HCl)2 and (HF)2 in small helium clusters: quantum solvation of hydrogen-bonded dimers

We present a rigorous theoretical study of the solvation of (HCl)(2) and (HF)(2) by small ((4)He)(n) clusters, with n=1-14 and 30. Pairwise-additive potential-energy surfaces of He(n)(HX)(2) (X=Cl and F) clusters are constructed from highly accurate four-dimensional (rigid monomer) HX-HX and two-dimensional (rigid monomer) He-HX potentials and a one-dimensional He-He potential. The minimum-energy geometries of these clusters, for n=1-6 in the case of (HCl)(2) and n=1-5 for (HF)(2), correspond to the He atoms in a ring perpendicular to and bisecting the HX-HX axis. The quantum-mechanical ground-state energies and vibrationally averaged structures of He(n)(HCl)(2) (n=1-14 and 30) and He(n)(HF)(2) (n=1-10) clusters are calculated exactly using the diffusion Monte Carlo (DMC) method. In addition, the interchange-tunneling splittings of He(n)(HCl)(2) clusters with n=1-14 are determined using the fixed-node DMC approach, which was employed by us previously to calculate the tunneling splittings for He(n)(HF)(2) clusters, n=1-10 [A. Sarsa et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 88, 123401 (2002)]. The vibrationally averaged structures of He(n)(HX)(2) clusters with n=1-6 for (HCl)(2) and n=1-5 for (HF)(2) have the helium density localized in an effectively one-dimensional ring, or doughnut, perpendicular to and at the midpoint of the HX-HX axis. The rigidity of the solvent ring varies with n and reaches its maximum for the cluster size at which the ring is filled, n=6 and n=5 for (HCl)(2) and (HF)(2), respectively. Once the equatorial ring is full, the helium density spreads along the HX-HX axis, eventually solvating the entire HX dimer. The interchange-tunneling splitting of He(n)(HCl)(2) clusters hardly varies at all over the cluster size range considered, n=1-14, and is virtually identical to that of the free HCl dimer. This absence of the solvent effect is in sharp contrast with our earlier results for He(n)(HF)(2) clusters, which show a approximately 30% reduction of the tunneling splitting for n=4. A tentative explanation for this difference is proposed. The implications of our results for the interchange-tunneling dynamics of (HCl)(2) in helium nanodroplets are discussed.     

Infrared spectroscopy of small sodium-doped water clusters: interaction with the solvated electron

The measured vibrational OH-stretch spectra of size-selected Na(H2O)n clusters for n=8, 10, 16, and 20 are compared with first-principle calculations, which account for the interaction of the sodium cation, the electron, and the water molecules with the hydrogen-bonded network. The calculated harmonic frequencies are corrected by comparing similar results obtained for pure water clusters with experiment. The experimental spectra are dominated by intensity peaks between 3350 and 3550 cm(-1), which result from the interaction of the H atoms with the delocalized electron cloud. The calculations, which are all based upon the average spectra of the four lowest-energy isomers, indicate that most of the peaks at the lower end of this range (3217 cm(-1) for n=8) originate from the interaction of one H atom with the electron distribution in a configuration with a single hydrogen-bonding acceptor. Those at the upper end (3563 cm(-1) for n=8) come from similar interactions with two acceptors. The doublets, which arise from the interaction of both H atoms with the electron, appear in the red-shifted part of the spectrum. They are with 3369/3443 cm(-1) quite pronounced for n=8 but slowly vanish for the larger clusters where they mix with the other spectral interactions of the hydrogen-bonded network, namely, the fingerprints of the free, the double, and the single donor OH positions known from pure water cluster spectroscopy. For all investigated sizes, the electron is sitting at the surface of the clusters.     

Study of HCl clusters in helium nanodroplets: experiments and ab initio calculations as stepping stones from gas phase to bulk

Presented here are the results of the joint theoretical and infrared laser spectroscopic study of the hydrogen chloride monomer and clusters, (HCl)n (n=1-6), isolated in helium nanodroplets. The H-Cl stretching bands of the dimers and trimers show a large increase in the band intensity as well as low frequency shift with respect to that in a single HCl molecule. The average frequency of the bands for clusters larger than trimers remains approximately constant, which correlates well with the onset of the folded cyclic structure and the full development of the hydrogen bonding in larger clusters. The structure of the clusters was found to be cyclic planar for trimers, slightly twisted square planar for tetramers, envelope-like for pentamers, and folded pseudobipyramidal for hexamers. This change in structure upon an increase of the cluster size can be seen as an early stage of the structural transition to the HCl solid, which consists of zigzag chains of HCl molecules. Spectra of large clusters of about 500 molecules consist of a single band, which encompasses the same frequency range of trimers through hexamers.     

Infrared spectroscopy of large ammonia clusters as a function of size

We have measured the vibrational spectra of large ammonia (NH3)n clusters by photofragment spectroscopy in the spectral range from 3150 to 3450 cm(-1) for the average sizes n = 29, 80, 212, 447, and 989 and by depletion spectroscopy for n=8. The spectra are dominated by peaks around 3385 cm(-1) which are attributed to the asymmetric nu3 NH-stretch mode. Two further peaks between 3200 and 3260 cm(-1) have about equal intensity for n = 8 and 29, but only about 0.40 of the intensity of the nu3 peak for the larger sizes. The spectra for the smallest and largest size agree with those obtained by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in slit jet expansion and collision cells, respectively. By accompanying calculation we demonstrate that the energetic order of the spectral features originating from the bending overtone 2nu4 and the symmetric NH-stretch nu1 in the range from 3150 to 3450 cm(-1) is changed between n = 10 and 100, while the asymmetric NH-stretch nu3 only exhibits a moderate redshift. The reason is the coupling of the ground state modes to the overtones.     

Structural and energetic properties of Ni-Cu bimetallic clusters

The lowest-energy structures for all compositions of Ni n Cu m bimetallic clusters with N = n + m up to 20 atoms, N = 23, and N = 38 atoms have been determined using a genetic algorithm for unbiased structure optimization in combination with an embedded-atom method for the calculation of the total energy for a given structure. Comparing bimetallic clusters with homoatomic clusters of the same size, it is shown that the most stable structures for each cluster size are composed entirely of Ni atoms. Among the bimetallic clusters in the size range N = 2-20, the Ni N-1 Cu 1 clusters possess the highest stability. Further, it has been established that most of the bimetallic cluster structures have geometries similar to those of pure Ni clusters. The size N = 38 presents a special case, as the bimetallic clusters undergo a dramatic structural change with increasing atom fraction of Cu. Moreover, we have identified an icosahedron, a double, and a triple icosahedron with one, two, and three Ni atoms at the centers, respectively, as particularly stable structures. We show that in all global-minimum structures Ni atoms tend to occupy mainly high-coordination inner sites, and we confirm the segregation of Cu on the surface of Ni-Cu bimetallic clusters predicted in previous studies. Finally, it is observed that, in contrast to the bulk, the ground-state structures of the 15-, 16-, and 17-atom bimetallic clusters do not experience a smooth transition between the structures of the pure copper and the pure nickel clusters as a function of the relative number of the two types of atoms. For these sizes, the concentration effect on energy is more important than the geometric one.     

Reactions of large water cluster anions with hydrogen chloride: formation of atomic hydrogen and phase separation in the gas phase

The reactions of water cluster anions (H2O)n-, n = 30-70, with hydrogen chloride have been studied by Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR) mass spectrometry. The first HCl taken up by the clusters is presumably ionically dissolved. The solvated electron recombines with the proton, which is thereby reduced to atomic hydrogen and evaporates from the cluster. This process is accompanied by blackbody radiation and collision induced loss of water molecules. Subsequent collisions lead to uptake of HCl and loss of H2O, yielding mixed clusters Cl-(HCl)m(H2O)n until they are saturated with HCl. Those saturated clusters lose H2O and HCl in a characteristic sequence. The final stage of the reaction, involving clusters with m = 0-4 and n = 0-6, is studied in detail with density functional theory calculations. The Cl-(HCl)4(H2O)6 cluster represents an example for supramolecular self-organization in the gas phase: it consists of a tetrahedral Cl-(HCl)4, connected on one side of the tetrahedron to a compact water hexamer.     

Hybrid diatomics-in-molecules-based quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical approach applied to the modeling of structures and spectra of mixed molecular clusters Arn(HCl)m and Arn(HF)m

A new hybrid QM/DIM approach aimed at describing equilibrium structures and spectroscopic properties of medium size mixed molecular clusters is developed. This methodology is applied to vibrational spectra of hydrogen chloride and hydrogen fluoride clusters with up to four monomer molecules embedded in argon shells Arn(H(Cl/F))m (n = 1-62, m = 1-4). The hydrogen halide complexes (QM part) are treated at the MP2/aug-cc-pVTZ level, while the interaction between HX molecules and Ar atoms (MM part) is described in terms of the semiempirical DIM methodology, based on the proper mixing between neutral and ionic states of the system [Grigorenko et al., J. Chem. Phys. 104, 5510 (1996)]. A detailed analysis of the resulting topology of the QM/DIM potential energy (hyper-)surface in the triatomic subsystem Ar-HX reveals more pronounced nonadditive atomic induction and dispersion contributions to the total interaction energy in the case of the Ar-HCl system. An extension of the original analytical DIM-based potential in the frame of the present model as well as the current limitations of the method are discussed. A modified algorithm for the gradient geometry optimization, along with partly analytical force constant matrix evaluation, is developed to treat large cages of argon atoms around molecular clusters. Calculated frequency redshifts of HX stretching vibrations in the mixed clusters relative to the isolated hydrogen-bonded complexes are in good agreement with experimental findings.     

A mass and time-of-flight spectroscopy study of the formation of clusters in free-jet expansions of normal D2

The mass spectra in the range of 2(D+)-38(D19+) amu of clusters formed in a supersonic free-jet expansion of normal D2 are investigated as functions of source temperature in the range of 95-220 K and of source pressure in the range of 10-120 bars. For some of the small ion fragments, time-of-flight distributions are also measured. For large clusters (n > 200) the intensities of the odd-numbered ion fragments exhibit magic numbers at D9+ and D15+ in accordance with previous experiments and calculations. The even-numbered ion fragments have much smaller intensities and exhibit new magic numbers at D10+ and D14+. For source conditions such that large clusters are formed, the intensities of the various different ion fragments are observed to saturate beyond a certain source pressure. At lower source pressures, where only small clusters are formed, the terminal mole fractions of the neutral dimers are analyzed in the light of available theories which take into account both the thermodynamics and the kinetics of the expansion. At higher source pressures and lower temperatures, where larger clusters are formed, the sizes of the neutral clusters are estimated using scaling laws and are found to be consistent with the mass spectra and measured time-of-flight distributions. By using a variety of techniques it has been possible to obtain reliable conclusions about the neutral cluster sizes for the present free-jet expansion conditions.     

质子化丙酮分子团簇的结构和振动光谱

The stable structures and vibrational spectra of protonated acetone molecule clusters with different sizes （CH3COCH3）nH +（n=1-7）are calculated at the 6-31G（d）level by means of density functional theory （B3LYP）quantum chemical calculations. The corresponding energies are analyzed at the level B3LYP/6-311+G（3df,2p）in order to obtain more accurate results. The proton affinity of neutral cyclic acetone molecule clusters increases with the increasing of cluster size. The calculated results show that the protonated acetone clusters have certain growth regularity with forming a solvation shell at the beginning and then new added acetone molecule attacking different active sites including the middle carbon atoms and the different methyl in solvation shell. The IR spectra of the protonated clusters are more complicate than that of neutral ones. The strongest peaks result from the movement of the proton between the two oxygen atoms in solvant shell apart from the case of n=1. Carbonyl stretching vibraional peaks split into the more and more and in general the corresponding intensities are weakened due to the protonation with the increasing of cluster size.     

Experimental and theoretical study of the microsolvation of sodium atoms in methanol clusters: differences and similarities to sodium-water and sodium-ammonia

Methanol clusters are generated in a continuous He-seeded supersonic expansion and doped with sodium atoms in a pick-up cell. By this method, clusters of the type Na(CH(3)OH)(n) are formed and subsequently photoionized by applying a tunable dye-laser system. The microsolvation process of the Na 3s electron is studied by determining the ionization potentials (IPs) of these clusters size-selectively for n = 2-40. A decrease is found from n = 2 to 6 and a constant value of 3.19 +/- 0.07 eV for n = 6-40. The experimentally-determined ionization potentials are compared with ionization potentials derived from quantum-chemical calculations, assuming limiting vertical and adiabatic processes. In the first case, energy differences are calculated between the neutral and the ionized cationic clusters of the same geometry. In the second case, the ionized clusters are used in their optimized relaxed geometry. These energy differences and relative stabilities of isomeric clusters vary significantly with the applied quantum-chemical method (B3LYP or MP2). The comparison with the experiment for n = 2-7 reveals strong variations of the ionization potential with the cluster structure indicating that structural diversity and non-vertical pathways give significant signal contributions at the threshold. Based on these findings, a possible explanation for the remarkable difference in IP evolutions of methanol or water and ammonia is presented: for methanol and water a rather localized surface or semi-internal Na 3s electron is excited to either high Rydberg or more localized states below the vertical ionization threshold. This excitation is followed by a local structural relaxation that couples to an autoionization process. For small clusters with n < 6 for methanol and n < 4 for water the addition of solvent molecules leads to larger solvent-metal-ion interaction energies, which consequently lead to lower ionization thresholds. For n = 6 (methanol) and n = 4 (water) this effect comes to a halt, which may be connected with the completion of the first cationic solvation shell limiting the release of local relaxation energy. For Na(NH(3))(n), a largely delocalized and internal electron is excited to autoionizing electronic states, a process that is no longer local and consequently may depend on cluster size up to very large n.     

Ultracold water cluster anions

Attachment of free electrons to water clusters embedded in helium droplets leads to water-cluster anions (H2O)n(-) and (D2O)n(-) of size n > or = 2. Small water-cluster anions bind to up to 10 helium atoms, providing compelling evidence for the low temperature of these complexes, but the most abundant species are bare cluster anions. In contrast to previous experiments on bare water clusters, which showed very pronounced magic and anti-magic anion sizes below n = 12, the presently observed size distributions vary much more smoothly, and all sizes are easily observed. Noticeable differences are also observed in the stoichiometry of fragment anions formed upon dissociative electron attachment and the energy dependence of their yield. Spectroscopic characterization of these ultracold water-cluster anions promises to unravel the relevance of metastable configurations in experiments and the nature of the still controversial bonding sites for the excess electron in small water-cluster anions.     

The structural and electronic properties of In(n)N(n = 1-13) clusters

The structural and electronic properties of In(n)N(n=1-13) clusters have been investigated by density-functional theory with the generalized gradient approximation. The results indicate that the equilibrium structures of In(n)N are linear for n=1,2, planar for n=3-5, and three dimensional for n=6-13. Maximum peaks were observed for In(n)N clusters at n=3,7,9 on the size dependence for second-order energy difference. These imply that these clusters possess relatively higher stability, which is consistent with the case of binding energy per atom. Moreover, the results show that the bonding in small In(n)N clusters has a little ionic character by Mulliken population analysis. The energy gap between the highest occupied and lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals, the vertical ionization potential and electron vertical affinity (VIP and VEA) form an even-odd alternating pattern with increasing cluster size. In general, the VIP tends to lower as the cluster size increases, while the VEA tends to increase as the cluster size increases.     

Microsolvation of HCl within cold NH3 clusters

The solid state solvation of HCl molecules with small ammonia clusters at an average temperature of 100 K was investigated by on-the-fly molecular dynamics methodology. Structures close to the proton jump from HCl molecule to the ammonia have been further checked with the MP2/aug-cc-pvDZ calculations. Ionization of HCl and/or sharing of the proton were found. Two Zundel-type ions were observedone with proton being shared between ammonium ion and Cl (-) anion (Cl (-)...H (+)...NH 3) in all complexes, and the second, between hydrogen chloride and Cl (-) anion in the HCl...Cl (-)...NH 4 (+)...(NH 3) 2 complex. However, in contrast to methanol clusters, ammonia clusters are not good for the proton wires since once the proton moves to ammonia, it is localized on the ammonium ion units.     

Chirally directed formation of nanometer-scale proline clusters

Ion mobility measurements, combined with molecular mechanics simulations, are used to study enantiopure and racemic proline clusters formed by electrospray ionization. Broad distributions of cluster sizes and charge states are observed, ranging from clusters containing only a few proline units to clusters that contain more than 100 proline units (i.e., protonated clusters of the form [xPro + nH](n+) with x = 1 to >100 and n = 1-7). As the sizes of clusters increase, there is direct evidence for nanometer scale, chirally induced organization into specific structures. For n = 4 and 5, enantiopure clusters of approximately 50 to 100 prolines assemble into structures that are more elongated than the most compact structure that is observed from the racemic proline clusters. A molecular analogue, cis-4-hydroxy-proline, displays significantly different behavior, indicating that in addition to the rigidity of the side chain ring, intermolecular interactions are important in the formation of chirally directed clusters. This is the first case in which assemblies of chirally selective elongated structures are observed in this size range of amino acid clusters. Relationships between enantiopurity, cluster shape, and overall energetics are discussed.     

Fragmentation channels of large multicharged clusters

We address unifying features of fragmentation channels driven by long-range Coulomb or pseudo-Coulomb forces in clusters, nuclei, droplets, and optical molasses. We studied the energetics, fragmentation patterns, and dynamics of multicharged (A+)n (n=55, 135, 321) clusters. In Morse clusters the variation of the range of the pair-potential induced changes in the cluster surface energy and in the fissibility parameter X=E(Coulomb)2E(surface). X was varied in the range of X=1-8 for short-range interactions and of X=0.1-1.0 for long-range interactions. Metastable cluster configurations were prepared by vertical ionization of the neutral clusters and by subsequent structural equilibration. The energetics of these metastable ionic clusters was described in terms of the liquid drop model, with the coefficients of the volume and surface energies depending linearly on the Morse band dissociation energy. Molecular-dynamics simulations established two distinct fragmentation patterns of multicharged clusters that involve cluster fission into a small number of large, multicharged clusters for X<1 and Coulomb explosion into a large number of individual ions and small ionic fragments for X>1. The Rayleigh instability limit X=1 separates between spatially anisotropic fission and spatially isotropic Coulomb explosion. Distinct features of the fragmentation energetics and dynamics were unveiled. For fission of n=55 clusters, large kinetic and internal energies of the large fragments are exhibited and the characteristic fragmentation time is approximately 700 fs, while for Coulomb explosion the major energy content of the small fragments involves kinetic energy and the characteristic fragmentation time of approximately 300 fs is shorter. The Rayleigh (X=1) limit, leading to isotropic Coulomb explosion, is transcended by a marked enhancement of the Coulomb energy, which is realized for extremely ionized clusters in ultraintense laser fields, or by a dramatic reduction of the surface energy as is the case for the expansion of optical molasses.     

Proton formation in 2+1 resonance enhanced multiphoton excitation of HCl and HBr via (Omega=0) Rydberg and ion-pair states

Molecular beam cooled HCl was state selected by two-photon excitation of the V (1) summation operator(0(+)) [v=9,11-13,15], E (1) summation operator(0(+)) [v=0], and g (3) summation operator(-)(0(+)) [v=0] states through either the Q(0) or Q(1) lines of the respective (1,3) summation operator(0(+))<--<--X (1) summation operator(0(+)) transition. Similarly, HBr was excited to the V (1) summation operator(0(+)) [v=m+3, m+5-m+8], E (1) summation operator(0(+)) [v=0], and H (1) summation operator(0(+)) [v=0] states through the Q(0) or Q(1) lines. Following absorption of a third photon, protons were formed by three different mechanisms and detected using velocity map imaging. (1) H(*)(n=2) was formed in coincidence with (2)P(i) halogen atoms and subsequently ionized. For HCl, photodissociation into H(*)(n=2)+Cl((2)P(12)) was dominant over the formation of Cl((2)P(32)) and was attributed to parallel excitation of the repulsive [(2) (2)Pi4llambda] superexcited (Omega=0) states. For HBr, the Br((2)P(32))Br((2)P(12)) ratio decreases with increasing excitation energy. This indicates that both the [(3) (2)Pi(12)5llambda] and the [B (2) summation operator5llambda] superexcited (Omega=0) states contribute to the formation of H(*)(n=2). (2) For selected intermediate states HCl was found to dissociate into the H(+)+Cl(-) ion pair with over 20% relative yield. A mechanism is proposed by which a bound [A (2) summation operatornlsigma] (1) summation operator(0(+)) superexcited state acts as a gateway state to dissociation into the ion pair. (3) For all intermediate states, protons were formed by dissociation of HX(+)[v(+)] following a parallel, DeltaOmega=0, excitation. The quantum yield for the dissociation process was obtained using previously reported photoionization efficiency data and was found to peak at v(+)=6-7 for HCl and v(+)=12 for HBr. This is consistent with excitation of the repulsive A(2) summation operator(12) and (2) (2)Pi states of HCl(+), and the (3) (2)Pi state of HBr(+). Rotational alignment of the Omega=0(+) intermediate states is evident from the angular distribution of the excited H(*)(n=2) photofragments. This effect has been observed previously and was used here to verify the reliability of the measured spatial anisotropy parameters.     

Dynamics of HCl collisions with hydroxyl- and methyl-terminated self-assembled monolayers

Molecular beam scattering techniques are used to explore the energy exchange and thermal accommodation efficiencies of HCl in collisions with long-chain OH- and CH(3)-terminated self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on gold. Upon colliding with the nonpolar methyl-terminated SAM, HCl (E(i) = 85 kJ/mol) is found to transfer the majority, 83%, of its translational energy to the surface. The extensive energy loss for HCl helps to bring the molecules into thermal equilibrium with the monolayer. Specifically, 72% of the HCl approaches thermal equilibrium prior to desorption. For the molecules that do not thermally accommodate, but scatter after an impulsive collision with the surface, the final translational energy is observed to be directly proportional to the surface temperature as the thermal surface energy and gas translational energy exchange during the collision. For the OH-terminated SAM, the impulsively scattered HCl escapes from the surface with slightly more average energy. The rigid nature of the OH-terminated SAM is due to the extended intra-monolayer hydrogen-bonding network that restricts some of the low-energy modes of the surface. However, despite the rigid nature of this system, the extent of thermal accommodation for HCl on these two surfaces is remarkably similar. It appears that the potential energy well between the impinging HCl and the polar surface groups is sufficient enough to trap HCl molecules that would otherwise scatter impulsively from this rigid SAM.     

The solvation of iodine anions in water clusters: PES studies

We have measured the photoelectron-spectra of I^? (H₂O)_n clusters in the size range n=1–60. We have found that the first six water molecules form a solvation layer with an average 0.35 eV electrostatic stabilization of the anion. At larger cluster sizes the electrostatic stabilization of water does not fit a continuous dielectric solvent. The most stable structures of the clusters consist of internally solvated anions. In the size range n=34–40 we have found evidence for existence of cluster structures with surface solvated anions.     

Photoinduced charge-transfer reaction at surfaces. Part I. (HCl)m..Nan/LiF(001) + hv (640 nm)-->(HCl)m - 1 Cl-Nan+/LiF(001) + H(g)

A sub-monolayer of atomic sodium, Nan, was deposited on LiF(001) at 50 K and characterized by temperature-programmed desorption, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and titration with HCl. The Nan was dosed with HCl to form (HCl)m..Nan/LiF(001), which was then irradiated by 640 nm laser-radiation to induce a charge-transfer (CT) reaction. Reaction-product atomic H(g) was observed leaving the surface, by two-color Rydberg-atom time-of-flight (TOF) spectroscopy. These H-atoms gave evidence of arising from the photoinduced harpooning reaction between the sodium clusters, Nan, on the substrate, and (HCl)m adsorbed on the Nan. The translational energy distribution, its vibrational structure, and the angular distribution of H(g) gave information regarding the harpooning event. Translationally and vibrationally excited HCl(g) was shown, by resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI), to be formed as an alternate product; by way of (HCl)m..Nan/LiF(001) + 602 nm-->(HCl)m - 1 Nan/LiF(001) + HCl(g)(v > or = 0).     

Adsorption and desorption of HCl on Pt(111)

The adsorption and desorption of HCl on Pt(111) is investigated by temperature programmed desorption, infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy, and low energy electron diffraction. Five peaks are identified in the desorption spectra prior to the onset of multilayer desorption. At low coverage ( < 0.25 monolayers (ML)), desorption peaks at approximately 135 and 200 K are observed and assigned to recombinative desorption of dissociated HCl. At higher coverages, desorption peaks at 70, 77, and 84 K are observed. These peaks are assigned to the desorption of molecularly adsorbed HCl. The infrared spectra are in agreement with these assignments and show that HCl deposited at 20 K is amorphous but crystallizes when heated above 60 K. Kinetic analysis of the desorption spectra reveals a strong repulsive coverage dependence for the desorption energy of the low coverage features ( < 0.25 ML). The diffraction data indicate that at low temperature the adsorbed HCl clusters into ordered islands with a (3 x 3) structure and a local coverage of 4/9 with respect to the Pt(111) substrate.