Formation, stability and CO adsorption properties of PdAg/Pd(1 1 1) surface alloys

The formation, stability and CO adsorption properties of PdAg/Pd(1 1 1) surface alloys were investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and by adsorption of CO probe molecules, which was characterized by temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) and high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy (HREELS). The PdAg/Pd(1 1 1) surface alloys were prepared by annealing (partly) Ag film covered Pd(1 1 1) surfaces, where the Ag films were deposited at room temperature. Surface alloy formation leads to a modification of the electronic properties, evidenced by core-level shifts (CLSs) of both the Pd(3d) and Ag(3d) signal, with the extent of the CLSs depending on both initial Ag coverage and annealing temperature. The role of Ag pre-coverage and annealing temperature on surface alloy formation is elucidated. For a monolayer Ag covered Pd(1 1 1) surface, surface alloy formation starts at ∼450 K, and the resulting surface alloy is stable upon annealing at temperatures between 600 and 800 K. CO TPD and HREELS measurements demonstrate that at 120 K CO is exclusively adsorbed on Pd surface atoms/Pd sites of the bimetallic surfaces, and that the CO adsorption behavior is dominated by geometric ensemble effects, with adsorption on threefold hollow Pd₃ sites being more stable than on Pd₂ bridge sites and finally Pd₁ a-top sites.     

First-principles calculations of hydrogen molecule adsorption on Ti (0 0 0 1)-(2 × 1) surface

Adsorption of H₂ molecule on the Ti (0 0 0 1)-(2 × 1) surface was studied by density functional theory with generalized gradient approximation (GGA). The parallel and vertical absorption cases were investigated in detail by adsorption energy and electronic structure analysis, we obtained three stable configurations of FCC-FCC (the two H atoms adsorption on the two adjacent fcc sites of Ti (0 0 0 1) surface, respectively), HCP-HCP (the two H atoms adsorption on the two adjacent hcp sites of Ti (0 0 0 1) surface, respectively) and FCC-HCP (the one H atom adsorption on the fcc site and the other adsorption on the near hcp site) based on the six different parallel adsorption sites after the H₂ molecule dissociates. However, all the end configurations of four vertical adsorption sites were unstable, H₂ molecule was very easy to desorb from Ti surface. The H-H bond breaking and Ti-H bond forming result from the H₂ molecule dissociation. H-H bond breaking length ranges from 1.9 Å to 2.3 Å for different adsorption configurations due to the strong Ti-H bond forming. The H₂ dissociative approach and the end stable configurations formation in parallel adsorption processes are attributed to the quantum mechanics steering effects.     

Germanium growth on Br-terminated Si(1 0 0)

The consequences of Ge deposition on Br-terminated Si(1 0 0) were studied with scanning tunneling microscopy at ambient temperature after annealing at 650 K. One monolayer of Br was sufficient to prevent the formation of Ge huts beyond the critical thickness of 3 ML. This is possible because Br acts as a surfactant whose presence lowered the diffusivity of Ge adatoms. Hindered mobility was manifest at low coverage through the formation of short Ge chains. Further deposition resulted in the extension and connection of the Ge chains and gave rise to the buildup of incomplete layers. The deposition of 7 ML of Ge resulted in a rough surface characterized by irregularly shaped clusters. A short 800 K anneal desorbed the Br and allowed Ge atoms to reorganize into the more energetically favorable “hut” structures produced by conventional Ge overlayer growth on Si(1 0 0).     

A photoemission study of molybdenum hexacarbonyl adsorption and decomposition on TiO2(1 1 0) surface

The adsorption and decomposition of molybdenum hexacarbonyl on (1 1 0) TiO₂ surfaces were studied using both core levels and valence band photoemission spectroscopies. It was found that after an adsorption at 140 K, when going back to room temperature, only a small part of molybdenum compounds, previously present at low temperature, remained on the TiO₂ surface. This indicates that the desorption temperature on such a surface is lower than the decomposition one. The use of photon irradiation to decompose the hexacarbonyl molecule was also studied. It was shown that during such a decomposition molecular fragments were chemisorbed on the surface allowing a higher amount of metal to remain on the surface. It was also shown that it was possible to get rid of adsorbed subcarbonyl groups and to organize the metal atoms by thermal treatments at temperatures as low as 400 K, i.e. much lower than the one needed to obtain the same structures using physical vapour deposition (PVD). Moreover, due to lower used temperatures, this chemical way of deposition allows a better control of the interface than during PVD growth.     

Self-assembly of 2,6-dimethylpyridine on Cu(1 1 0) directed by weak hydrogen bonding

Sequential stages of formation of a self-assembled monolayer of flat-lying 2,6-dimethylpyridine molecules on a single crystal Cu(1 1 0) surface have been observed by low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (LT-STM). At an adsorption temperature of 10 K, all of the molecules are randomly distributed at low coverage upon adsorption. The isolated molecules align their molecular axes parallel to the 〈0 0 1〉 azimuth of the Cu lattice. The nitrogen atom in the molecule is located at the four-fold hollow site. Upon annealing to 100 K, the molecules associate to form head-to-head dimers. The dimer units involve a pair of weak hydrogen bonds between methyl group-hydrogen atoms and N moieties on adjacent molecules, forming a core structure for further growth. In a later stage of self-assembly, single head-to-tail weak hydrogen bonds between ring C-H bonds and N moieties form in chains on the periphery of the central cores, leading to larger domains with a c(6 × 2) overlayer structure.     

Theoretical study of Ti and Fe surface alloys on Al(0 0 1) substrate

Accurate density-functional calculations are performed to investigate the formation of Ti and Fe ultrathin alloys on Al(0 0 1) surface. It is demonstrated that a deposition of Ti monolayer on Al(0 0 1) substrate leads to the formation of Al₃Ti surface alloy with Ti atoms arranged according to the L1₂ stacking, distinct from the D0₂₂ structure characteristic of a bulk Al₃Ti compound. A quest for the reason of this distinct atomic arrangement led us to the study of the surface structure of Al₃Ti(0 0 1) compound. It is concluded that even the Al₃Ti(0 0 1) surface is terminated with three layers assuming a L1₂ stacking and hence this stacking fault can be classified as a surface-induced stacking fault. Several possibilities of Fe atoms distributed in the surface region of Al(0 0 1) have been examined. The most stable configuration is the one with the compact Fe monolayer on Al(0 0 1) and covered by one Al monolayer. Lastly, our calculations show that there is no barrier for the penetration of Fe adatoms below the Al(0 0 1) surface; however, such a barrier is present for a Ti-alloyed Al(0 0 1) surface.     

Ground-state properties of arsenic deposited on the Ge(0 0 1)(2 × 1) surface

We present results of ab initio calculations of structural, electronic and vibrational properties of the Ge(0 0 1) surface covered with a monolayer of arsenic. The fully occupied π_u bonding and π_g antibonding electronic states due to the As-As dimer formation are quite close in energy and their ordering is same as that found on the Si(0 0 1) surface. Using our calculated atomic and electronic structures, surface lattice dynamics was studied by employing a linear response approach based on density functional perturbation theory. A comparison of the phonon spectrum of the Ge(0 0 1)/As(2 × 1) surface with that of the clean Ge(0 0 1)(2 × 1) surface indicates the presence of several new characteristic phonon modes due to adsorption of As atoms.     

Au/TiO2/Ru(0 0 0 1) model catalysts and their interaction with CO

Au/TiO₂/Ru(0 0 0 1) model catalysts and their interaction with CO were investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy and different surface spectroscopies. Thin titanium oxide films were prepared by Ti deposition on Ru(0 0 0 1) in an O₂ atmosphere and subsequent annealing in O₂. By optimizing the conditions for deposition and post-treatment, smooth films were obtained either as fully oxidized TiO₂ or as partly reduced TiO_x, depending on the preparation conditions. CO adsorbed molecularly on both oxidized and reduced TiO₂, with slightly stronger bonding on the reduced films. Model catalyst surfaces were prepared by depositing submonolayer quantities of Au on the films and characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning tunneling microscopy. From X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, a weak interaction between the Au and the TiO₂ substrate was found. At 100 K CO adsorption occurred on both the TiO₂ film and on the Au nanoparticles. CO desorbed from the Au particles with activation energies between 53 and 65 kJ/mol, depending on the Au coverage. If the Au deposit was annealed to 770 K prior to CO exposure, the CO adsorption energy decreased significantly. STM measurements revealed that the Au particles grow upon annealing, but are not encapsulated by TiO_x suboxides. The higher CO adsorption energy observed for smaller Au coverages and before annealing is attributed to a significantly stronger interaction of CO with mono- and bilayer Au islands, while for higher particles, the adsorption energy becomes more bulk-like. The implications of these effects on the known particle size effects in CO oxidation over supported Au/TiO₂ catalysts are discussed.     

Scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy of Mo clusters grown on TiO2(1 1 0)

Molybdenum was deposited in two steps (3 eq. ML and 1 eq. ML) on the light blue rutile TiO₂(1 1 0) (1 × 1) surface at room temperature, each Mo deposition cycle being followed by an annealing up to 950-1000 K. This procedure was found to lead to formation of separated clusters having a size in very wide range (1-20 nm). Scanning tunneling microscopy showed a dependence of the cluster morphology as a function of the size. The scanning tunneling spectra of Mo clusters was studied as a function of cluster dimensions and discussed in comparison with photoelectron spectroscopy results previously obtained for homogeneous Mo films. The dI/dV curves do not display the valence band structure of deposited material, which could be explained by the Schottky barrier formation.     

The adsorption of In on the surface of (0 0 1) CdTe

To understand CdTe doping with In, first-principle calculations are performed to obtain the various kinds of surface-structure for In on CdTe (0 0 1) surface. Of all the structures examined, the structure of CdTe (0 0 1) as caused by In adsorption atoms at the fourfold hollow sites with 0.25 monolayer coverage is the most energetically favorable. In atoms are adsorbed on the Cd-terminated surface, whereas below the Te-terminated surface. For the Cd-terminated surface, cadmium vacancy can form spontaneously and is energetically favorable. In atoms are likely to be adsorbed/incorporated at an interstitial site on Te-terminated CdTe (0 0 1) surfaces for most of the range of the chemical potential.     

Adsorption of gold on hydrogen terminated Si(0 0 1): Formation of chain structure

Possible formation of stable Au atomic wire on the hydrogen terminated Si(0 0 1): 3×1 surface is investigated under the density functional formalism. The hydrogen terminated Si(0 0 1): 3×1 surface is patterned in two different ways by removing selective hydrogen atoms from the surface. The adsorption of Au on such surfaces is studied at different sub-monolayer coverages. At 4/9 monolayer (ML) coverage, zigzag continuous Au chains are found to be stable on the patterned hydrogen terminated Si(0 0 1): 3×1 surface. The reason for the stability of the wire structures at 4/9 ML coverage is explained. It is to be noted that beyond 4/9 ML coverage, the additional Au atoms may introduce clusters on the surface. The continuous atomic gold chains on the substrate may be useful for the fabrication of atomic scale devices.     

Surfactant effect of Sb on the growth of MnSi1.7 layers on Si(0 0 1)

Deposition of one monolayer of Sb prior to the deposition of Mn at 600 °C is observed to increase the MnSi_1.7 island density by about two orders of magnitude as well as to change the crystalline orientation of the silicide grains. The preferential epitaxial orientation of MnSi_1.7 grains grown by this process is determined to be MnSi_1.7(1 0 0)[0 1 0]||Si(0 0 1)[1 0 0]. This growth procedure results in the silicide growth into the Si matrix. For comparison, the same deposition process carried out without Sb leads to silicide formation on top of the substrate surface. The observed morphological changes of the MnSi_1.7 layers can be explained by a reduced surface diffusion of the Mn atoms on Si(0 0 1) in presence of the Sb monolayer. Additionally, lateral Si diffusion is considered to be nearly suppressed, which is responsible for the observed silicide growth into the substrate.     

Room-temperature-adsorption behavior of acetic anhydride on a TiO2(1 1 0) surface

We have studied the adsorption structure of acetic anhydride on a TiO₂(1 1 0) surface using XPS (X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy), LEED (low energy electron diffraction) and HREELS (high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy) to determine the origins of the unique adsorption properties of carboxylic acids on a TiO₂(1 1 0) surface. The C 1s XPS data indicated that the saturation carbon amount of adsorbed acetic anhydride was 12 ± 3% larger than that of the adsorbed acetic acid. LEED showed p(2 × 1) weak spots for the acetic anhydride adsorbed surface. The HREELS spectra revealed the dissociative adsorption of acetic anhydride. Based on these findings, we concluded that the neutralization of the bridging oxygen atoms associated with the dissociative adsorption is necessary for the stable adsorption of carboxylates on the 5-fold Ti sites.     

Structural characterisation of ultra-thin VOx films on TiO2(1 1 0)

The normal incidence X-ray standing wave (NIXSW) technique has been applied to investigate the structure of ultra-thin VO_x films grown on TiO₂(1 1 0) and pre-characterised by core level photoemission. For a film composed of a sub-monolayer coverage of V deposited in ultra-high vacuum the local structure of two coexistent species, labelled ‘oxidic’ and ‘metallic’, has been investigated independently through the use of chemical-shift-NIXSW. The ‘oxidic’ state is shown to be consistent with a mixture of epitaxial or substitutional sites and chemisorption into sites coordinated to three surface O atoms. The metallic V atoms also involve a mixture of chemisorption and second-layer sites above the substrate surface consistent with the formation of small V clusters. VO_x films up to ∼6 atomic layers were also grown by post-oxidation (sequential V deposition and annealing in oxygen) and by reactive evaporation in a partial pressure of oxygen. While films of around one monolayer or less are consistent with epitaxial VO₂ growth, the film quality deteriorates rapidly with increasing thickness and is worse for reactive evaporation. A possible interpretation of the NIXSW data is increasing contributions of V₂O₃ crystallites. The inferior quality of the reactively evaporated films may be due to an insufficient supply of oxygen.     

A study of Ga layers on Si(1 0 0)-(2 × 1) by SR-PES: Influence of adsorbed water

Results for deposition and thermal annealing of gallium on the Si(1 0 0)-(2 × 1) surface achieved by synchrotron radiation photoelectron spectroscopy (SR-PES) and low energy electron diffraction (LEED) are presented. In addition to deposition of Ga on a clean surface, the influence of water adsorption on the arrangement of gallium atoms was also studied. The results on Ga deposition at a higher temperature (490 °C) are consistent with a Ga ad-dimer model showing equivalent bond arrangement of all Ga atoms for coverages up to 0.5 ML. The deposition onto a surface with adsorbed water at room temperature led to a disordered gallium growth. In this case gallium atoms bind to silicon dimers already binding fragments of adsorbed water. A subsequent annealing of these layers leads to a surface structure similar to the Ga-(2 × 2), however, it is less ordered, probably due to the presence of silicon oxides formed from water fragments.     

Formation and characterization of Rh-Mo bimetallic layers on the TiO2(1 1 0) surface

The investigation of Rh, Mo and Rh-Mo nanosized clusters formed by physical vapor deposition on TiO₂(1 1 0) single crystal was performed by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Low Energy Ion Scattering (LEIS) and Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES). There was no sign for site-exchange between Mo and Rh atoms during deposition of Mo onto Rh particles at 330 K. Mixing between Ti and Mo ions was facilitated at the Mo particle-titania interface due to reaction at 550-700 K. The redox process between titania and Mo deposit was hindered at 330 K by forming predeposited rhodium layer (Θ_Rh = 2.0 ML), but reached nearly the same extent as without Rh after moderate heating to 600 K. The encapsulation of Rh by titania was complete by about 700 K in the presence of 1.2 ML Mo, in case of Mo-predeposition and Mo-postdeposition as well. Elevating the temperature of TiO₂/Rh-Mo layers above 700 K, these metals form alloy at the Mo-Rh interface irrespective of deposition sequences.     

The gold and oxygen (3 × 1) structures on W(1 1 2)

The adsorption of two very different adsorbates, gold and oxygen, induce the formation of a (3 × 1) surface structure on both W(1 1 2) and Mo(1 1 2). In spite of similar adsorbate unit cells, the surface electronic structure, derived from photoemission, exhibits pronounced differences for the two adsorbates. Indeed, both experiment and simulations indicate substantial changes in electronic structures of (1 × 1) and (3 × 1) gold overlayers supported by highly anisotropic (1 1 2) plane. We speculate that (3 × 1) is a favored periodicity in the atomic rearrangement of the (1 1 2) surfaces of molybdenum and tungsten due in part as a result of the initial state band structure of these surfaces.     

Theoretical study of CO and Pb adsorption on the Ni(1 1 1) and Ni3Al(1 1 1) surfaces

Adsorption of CO molecules and Pb atoms on the Ni(1 1 1) and Ni₃Al(1 1 1) substrates is studied theoretically within an ab initio density-functional-theory approach. Stable adsorption sites and the corresponding adsorption energies are first determined for stoichiometric surfaces. The three-fold hollow sites (fcc for Pb and hcp for CO) are found most favourable on both substrates. Next, the effect of surface alloying by a substitution of selected topmost substrate atoms by Pb or Ni atoms on the adsorption characteristics is investigated. When the surface Al atoms of the Ni₃Al(1 1 1) substrate are replaced by Ni atoms, the Pb and CO adsorption energies approach those for a pure Ni(1 1 1) substrate. The Pb alloying has a more substantial effect. On the Ni₃Al(1 1 1) substrate, it reduces considerably adsorption energy of CO. On the Ni(1 1 1) substrate, CO binding strengthens slightly upon the formation of the Ni(1 1 1)p(2×2)-Pb surface alloy, whereas it weakens drastically when the Ni(1 1 1)-Pb surface alloy is formed.     

Mechanisms of preferential adsorption on the Si(1 1 1)7 × 7 surface

The surface relaxation mechanisms governing the preferential adsorption of metal atoms onto the faulted half-cells of a 7 × 7 reconstructed Si(1 1 1) surface are studied by rate equations and kinetic Monte Carlo simulations. The versatility of these mechanisms to control the formation of quasi-perfect 2D arrays of metal clusters is revealed via the optimization of the deposition/annealing conditions as a function of operating mechanisms, the Si(1 1 1)7 × 7 energy landscape, and the thermal stability of the created clusters. The influence on the formation process of such nanoarrays of the balance between kinetic limitations, which are especially relevant on Si(1 1 1)7 × 7, and thermodynamic tendencies is discussed.     

Photoelectron spectroscopy study of oxygen adsorption on Mo2C(0 0 0 1)

Oxygen adsorption on the α-Mo₂C(0 0 0 1) surface has been investigated with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and valence photoelectron spectroscopy utilizing synchrotron radiation. It is found that oxygen adsorbs dissociatively at room temperature, and the adsorbed oxygen atoms interact with both Mo and C atoms to form an oxycarbide layer. As the O-adsorbed surface is heated at ≧800 K, the C-O bonds are broken and the adsorbed oxygen atoms are bound only to Mo atoms. Valence PES study shows that the oxygen adsorption induces a peculiar state around the Fermi level, which enhances the emission intensity at the Fermi edge in PES spectra.