The influence of crystallographic steps on coadsorption: CO---O/Ni(119)

On low index nickel surfaces, repulsive interactions between atomic oxygen and CO drive the phase separation of these species into oxygen-rich and CO-rich islands. Because these adsorbates interact differently with crystallographic steps, the size and the structure of these islands are modified on stepped surfaces. We have monitored coadsorption-induced changes in the distribution of CO with IRRAS, observing six different CO stretching bands which are assigned to distinct local chemisorption environments. When oxygen fully saturates sites along the step edge, the steps are completely blocked from CO adsorption and virtually all the CO population on the terraces shifts from atop to bridge sites. This terrace site shift is similarly accomplished by atomic oxygen chemisorbed at terrace sites. From these coadsorption-induced changes in CO site distributions, constrained by the 10 Å terrace width, we conclude the through-metal O---CO interaction responsible for this CO site shift must be operative over a range of 5 Å. At θ_o = 0.18 ML, when oxygen occupies, but does not fully saturate the step edge, a new CO adsorption site is created, with a characteristic frequency of 1750 cm⁻¹. This new site is assigned to CO bonded to kinks along the step edge based upon its low intensity ( geometric kink density), enhanced binding strength and sensitivity to oxygen coverage. At higher oxygen coverages, compression of the CO adlayer is observed, with CO shifting to asymmetric bridge sites. As saturation coverage is approached, CO occupies weakly bound sites in close proximity ( 3 Å) to O adatoms, with high characteristic frequencies of 2100 cm⁻¹.     

Estimation of friction of a single chemisorbed molecule on a surface using incident atoms

Friction of a single molecule chemisorbed on a surface is a very fundamental property related to the dynamics of the diffusion of the molecule. We used a newly developed method, in which energy-controlled rare gas atoms collide with CO molecules on a stepped surface to displace CO molecules from initial terrace sites to final step sites. The friction coefficient of CO molecules on the surface was determined directly by comparing the experimentally measured increase in the number of CO molecules at step sites with classical molecular dynamics simulation results.     

CO vibrations on a stepped Ni surface

Electron energy loss spectra (ELS) have been measured after CO adsorption on the stepped Ni[5(111) × (11̄0)] surface as function of substrate temperature and CO exposure. At 150 K and exposures below 0.5 L, only adsorption sites close to the step edges are occupied. Pronounced rearrangements of CO molecules over terrace sites occur by increasing the temperature to 300 K. The occupation of special step sites gives rise to an exceptionally low frequency C-O stretching vibration of 1520 cm⁻¹. This frequency indicative of a weakened C-O bond is correlated with the previously found tendency for CO decomposition to occur on this surface during a flash desorption experiment.     

The dissimilar twins - a comparative, site-selective in situ study of CO adsorption and desorption on Pt(3 2 2) and Pt(3 5 5)

The adsorption and desorption of CO on stepped Pt(3 2 2) = Pt(S)-[5(1 1 1) × (1 0 0)] and Pt(3 5 5) = Pt(S)-[5(1 1 1) × (1 1 1)] were investigated using in situ high-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy at BESSY II, which allows to clearly distinguish between different step and terrace adsorption sites. For the two surfaces, with the same nominal terrace width of five atomic rows, but different step orientation, significant differences are observed. While for Pt(3 5 5) CO adsorption at steps only occurs at on-top sites, on Pt(3 2 2) both step on-top and bridge sites are occupied, albeit with a significantly lower coverage (0.07 vs. 0.13 ML at 200 K). On both surfaces terrace sites are only occupied when the step sites are almost saturated confirming the enhanced binding energy at step sites. CO adsorbed at the (1 1 1) steps on Pt(3 5 5) is more strongly bound than on the (1 0 0) steps on Pt(3 2 2), which is attributed to the different electronic and geometric structure of the steps. The relative occupation of terrace and step sites at a given coverage remains the same between 120 and 290 K on Pt(3 5 5) K, but shows major changes on Pt(3 2 2), between step on-top and bridge sites as well as terrace on-top and bridge sites. On Pt(3 5 5) a smaller CO terrace coverage is found (0.36 vs. 0.40 ML on Pt(3 2 2) at 200 K), mainly due to the lower occupation of terrace bridge sites. For Pt(3 2 2), an ordered adsorbate phase is deduced from a c(4 × 2)-like LEED pattern, which indicates adsorbate order beyond the extension of a single terrace. A model for this structure is proposed.     

Collision-induced migration of CO on Pt(9 9 7) surface

Lateral displacement of adsorbates induced by collisions with energy-controlled rare gas atoms was examined in an ultra high vacuum chamber using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and a supersonic molecular beam apparatus. A stepped Pt(9 9 7) surface was exposed to CO molecules and subsequently to energy-controlled Ne or Ar atoms. There was no change in the CO stretching mode region of the FTIR spectrum of the Pt(9 9 7) surface after Ne atoms having an average translational energy of 0.23 eV were collided with it. However, when Ne atoms having an average translational energy of 0.56 eV were collided with the surface, the intensity of the peak assigned to the CO stretching mode at terrace sites decreased, while that at step sites increased with increasing the exposure to the Ne atoms. This is the demonstration of collision-induced migration, showing that CO molecules adsorbed at the terrace sites migrate laterally to the step sites upon collision with high-energy Ne atoms. In addition, the experimental results demonstrate the existence of an additional energy barrier for jumps across the steps. This investigation demonstrates an advantage of using a molecular beam for studying adsorbate migration.     

Helium scattering and work function investigation of co adsorption on Pt(111) and vicinal surfaces

CO adsorption on Pt(111) and vicinal Pt(111) surfaces has been studied by means of work function variation and He scattering measurements. AES and LEED were used mainly for correlations with other work. Special attention has been paid to the low coverage regime (θ_co < 0.1) with emphasis on surface structural dependencies. The minimum of the work function versus CO exposure curve occurs at a coverage less than 11% on “kink-free” surfaces. This is much lower than the hitherto commonly accepted value of 33%, and does not relate to any observed LEED superstructure. The value of Δφ_min depends strongly on the surface structure. For an “ideal” Pt(111) surface with a step density less than 10^?3 at a temperature of 300 K, Δφ_min = ?240 meV. The scattering cross section Σ of CO adsorbed on Pt(111) for 63 meV He is typically > 250 Ų, i.e. much larger than expected from the Van der Waals radii of He and CO. For two nominal Pt(111) surfaces with step densities of 10^?2 and less than 10^?3, respectively, the measured Σ values varied by a factor of three. This can be explained by preferential CO occupation of defect sites, which are already not “seen” by thermal helium. By comparing results on a stepped (997) and a kinked (12 11 9) Pt surface with similar defect densities, the kinks are proven to play a decisive role. They probably form saddles in the recently proposed activation barrier for migration between terrace and step sites.     

Coupled harmonic oscillator models of carbon monoxide adsorbed on stepped,platinum surfaces

Harmonic oscillator models are used to explain recent experimental data on infrared absorption by CO molecules adsorbed on two stepped platinum surfaces. These data reveal only a lower frequency band at low coverage and only a higher frequency band at high coverage. Both bands exist over a range of intermediate coverages. The data are explained by a coupled-dipole model which includes the effects of electronic polarizability, the tilted orientation of CO molecules at step sites, and the electric field enhancement at step sites. The lower-frequency band is associated with CO molecules adsorbed on step sites and the higher-frequency band is associated with two-dimensional islands consisting of both step and terrace CO. The model explains the observed variation of frequency and intensity with coverage for CO adsorption on Pt(533) and Pt(432) surfaces. The model calculations indicate that the wavenumber for a single, linearly bonded CO molecule is about 9 cm⁻¹ higher on a terrace site than on a step site.     

A theoretical investigation on Pt3Sn(1 0 2) surface alloy and CO-Pt3Sn(1 0 2) system

The adsorption properties of CO on experimentally verified stepped Pt₃Sn(1 0 2) surface were investigated using quantum mechanical calculations. The two possible terminations of Pt₃Sn(1 0 2) were generated and on these terminations all types of possible adsorption sites were determined. The adsorption energies and geometries of the CO molecule for all those sites were calculated. The most favorable sites for adsorption were determined as the short bridge site on the terrace of pure-Pt row of the mixed-atom-ending termination, atop site at the step-edge of the pure row of pure-Pt-ending termination and atop site at the step-edge of the pure-Pt row of the mixed-atom-ending termination. The results were compared with those for similar sites on the flat Pt₃Sn(1 1 0) surface considering the fact that Pt₃Sn(1 0 2) has terraces with (1 1 0) orientation. The LDOS analysis of bare sites clearly shows that there are significant differences between the electronic properties of Pt atoms at stepped Pt₃Sn(1 0 2) surface and the electronic properties of Pt atoms at flat (1 1 0) surface, which leads to changes in the CO bonding energies of these Pt atoms. Adsorption on Pt₃Sn(1 0 2) surface is in general stronger compared to that on Pt₃Sn(1 1 0) surface. The difference in adsorption strength of similar sites on these two surface terminations is a result of stepped structure of Pt₃Sn(1 0 2). The local density of states (LDOS) of the adsorbent Pt and C of adsorbed CO was utilized. The LDOS of the surface metal atoms with CO-adsorbed atop and of their bare state were compared to see the effect of CO chemisorption on the electron density distribution of the corresponding Pt atom. The downward shift in energy peak in the LDOS curves as well as changes in the electron densities of the corresponding energy levels indicate the orbital mixing between CO molecular orbitals and metal d-states. The present study showed that the adsorption strength of the sites has a direct relation with their LDOS profiles.     

Bond lengths and bond strengths in weak and strong chemisorption: N2, CO,and CO/H on nickel surfaces

New chemical-state-specific scanned-energy mode photoelectron diffraction experiments and density functional theory calculations, applied to CO, CO/H, and N2 adsorption on Ni(100), show that chemisorption bond length changes associated with large changes in bond strength are small, but those associated with changes in bond order are much larger, and are similar to those found in molecular systems. Specifically, halving the bond strength of atop CO to Ni increases the Ni-C distance by 0.06 A, but halving the bond order (atop to bridge site) at fixed bond strength causes an increase of 0.16 A.     

CHaracterization of CO binding sites on Rh{111} and Rh{331} surfaces by XPS and LEED: Comparison to EELS results

Changes in the nature of the binding site of chemisorbed CO on the Rh{111} and Rh{331} single crystal surfaces during adsorption and desorption have been monitored by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Low Energy Electron Diffraction (LEED). Two bonding states of molecular CO have been identified from the O 1s photoemission line. These states are assigned as atop and bridge-bonded species and are observed to be coverage and temperature dependent. On both surfaces atop sites are populated first and at higher CO coverages bridge sites are filled. On Rh{111} the bridge sites are filled at a CO coverage of θ_CO ～ 0.50 and their presence is correlated with a change in the LEED pattern. The presence of the step atoms on the Rh{331} surface markedly influenced the sequential filling of binding sites in comparison to that observed on the Rh{111} surface. A comparison of our data to previous Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (EELS) work on Rh{111} is in remarkable quantitative agreement with EELS peak heights.     

Local adsorption sites and bondlength changes in Ni(1 0 0)/H/CO and Ni(1 0 0)/CO

The local adsorption geometry of CO adsorbed in different states on Ni(1 0 0) and on Ni(1 0 0) precovered with atomic hydrogen has been determined by C 1s (and O 1s) scanned-energy mode photoelectron diffraction, using the photoelectron binding energy changes to characterise the different states. The results confirm previous spectroscopic assignments of local atop and bridge sites both with and without coadsorbed hydrogen. The measured Ni–C bondlengths for the Ni(1 0 0)/CO states show an increase of 0.16 ± 0.04 Å in going from atop to bridge sites, while comparison with similar results for Ni(1 1 1)/CO for threefold coordinated adsorption sites show a further lengthening of the bond by 0.05 ± 0.04 Å. These changes in the Ni–CO chemisorption bondlength with bond order (for approximately constant adsorption energy) are consistent with the standard Pauling rules. However, comparison of CO adsorbed in the atop geometry with and without coadsorbed hydrogen shows that the coadsorption increases the Ni–C bondlength by only 0.06 ± 0.04 Å, despite the decrease in adsorption energy of a factor of 2 or more. This result is also reproduced by density functional theory slab calculations. The results of both the experiments and the density functional theory calculations show that CO adsorption onto the Ni(1 0 0)/H surface is accompanied by significant structural modification; the low desorption energy may then be attributed to the energy cost of this restructuring rather than weak local bonding.     

Adsorption behavior and reaction properties of NO and CO on Rh(1 1 1)

Reactions between NO and CO on Rh(1 1 1) surfaces were investigated using infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and temperature-programmed desorption. NO adsorbed on the fcc, atop, and hcp sites in that order, whereas CO adsorbed initially on the atop sites and then on the hollow (fcc + hcp) sites. The results of experiments with NO exposure on CO-preadsorbed Rh(1 1 1) surfaces indicated that the adsorption of NO on the hcp sites was inhibited by preadsorption of CO on the atop sites, and NO adsorption on the atop and fcc sites was inhibited by CO preadsorbed on each type of site, which indicates that NO and CO competitively adsorbed on Rh(1 1 1). From a Rh(1 1 1) surface with coadsorbed NO and CO, N₂ was produced from the dissociation of fcc-NO, and CO₂ was formed by the reaction of adsorbed CO with atomic oxygen from dissociated fcc-NO. The CO₂ production increased remarkably in the presence of hollow-CO. Coverage of fcc-NO and hollow-CO on Rh(1 1 1) depended on the composition ratio of the NO/CO gas mixture, and a gas mixture with NO/CO ? 1/2 was required for the co-existence of fcc-NO and hollow-CO at 273 K.     

Adsorption of CO on PtBi2 and PtBi surfaces

Approximate molecular orbital calculations have been applied to explain the low CO poisoning effects observed at PtBi₂ and PtBi electrodes. The bonding patterns for chemisorption of CO on the surfaces of Pt-Bi bulk alloys and pure Pt surfaces are quite similar. The major difference is not induced through much Pt-Bi bonding, but indirectly, by raising the Fermi level of the system, so that the C-O π* levels become practically filled upon interaction. This results in much lower adsorption energies than in the metallic Pt case, in accordance with experimental data. The calculations also imply C-O bond dissociation on the surface, a phenomenon not supported by experiment. CO adsorption at Pt-Pt bridge site (possible only on PtBi) is favored relative to atop chemisorption.     

Structural analysis of Pt(1 1 1)c(√3 × 5)rect.-CO using photoelectron diffraction

Core level shift scanned-energy mode photoelectron diffraction using the two distinct components of the C 1s emission has been used to determine the structure of the Pt(1 1 1)c(√3 × 5)rect.-CO phase formed by 0.6 ML of adsorbed CO. The results confirm earlier assignments of these components to CO in atop and bridging sites, further confirm that the best structural model involves a 2:1 occupation ratio of these two sites, and provides quantitative structural parameter values. In particular the Pt-C chemisorption bondlengths for the atop and bridging sites are, respectively, 1.86 ± 0.02 Å and 2.02 ± 0.04 Å. These values are closely similar to those found in the 0.5 ML coverage c(4 × 2) phase, involving an atop:bridge occupation ratio of 1:1, obtained in earlier quantitative low energy electron diffraction studies. The results also indicate a clear tilt of the molecular axis of atop CO species in this compression phase, consistent with the finding of an earlier electron-stimulated desorption ion angular distribution investigation.     

Search for adsorption potential energy minima of NO on Pt(9 9 7) at 11 K

We observed four kinds of adsorbed NO molecules on Pt(9 9 7) at 11 K using infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRAS). The peaks at 1690, 1484 and 1615 cm⁻¹ are assigned to the N-O stretching modes of the on-top site and the hollow site on the terrace and the bridge site at the step, respectively. The 1385 cm⁻¹ peak is observed below ∼70 K. We assign the 1385 cm⁻¹ peak to the hollow site of the (1 1 1) microfacet at the step or the lower-terrace hollow site nearest to the step. By heating, site-to-site hopping to the more stable site occurs and the relative stability of four adsorption sites can be determined.     

Calorimetric studies of NO on Ni{2 1 1}: criteria for switching from dissociative to molecular adsorption

The coverage-dependent heats of adsorption and sticking probabilities in the interaction of nitric oxide with clean and oxygen pre-covered Ni{2 1 1} surfaces have been measured at 300 K using single crystal adsorption calorimetry. The results are consistent with a switch from dissociative to molecular chemisorption at 1 ML of O plus N adatoms. Initial dissociative adsorption is attributed to step sites with a heat of 400 kJ mol⁻¹. When steps are saturated with adatoms, adsorption proceeds molecularly with a heat of 160 kJ mol⁻¹. With 0.24 ML oxygen adatom pre-coverage, the initial heat is only 250 kJ mol⁻¹ and with 0.6 ML oxygen adatom, NO adsorption is only molecular with an initial heat of 160 kJ mol⁻¹. The NO sticking probability behaviour is consistent with this picture, with successive precursor mediated adsorption at step and terrace sites. The inhibition of dissociation above O, or O plus N, adatom coverages of 1 ML is attributed to the strong lateral repulsive interactions between adatoms, which would drive the dissociative heat of adsorption below that of molecular adsorption at higher coverages.     

The chemisorption of O2, CO,D2 and C2H4 over epitaxially grown rhenium crystalline films

The adsorption and desorption of oxygen, carbon monoxide, deuterium and ethylene has been studied over rhenium films using thermal desorption spectroscopy, low energy electron diffraction and Auger electron spectroscopy. The films, obtained by evaporating rhenium onto a platinum (111) single crystal, grow over the substrate forming (0001) basal plane rhenium surfaces. Oxygen chemisorbs on this film, forming an ordered structure, consisting of three (2 × 1) overlayer domains and giving a saturation coverage of half a monolayer of atomic oxygen. CO chemisorption is mainly molecular, although some dissociation occurs at temperatures above about 700 K. A complicated LEED pattern is obtained when saturating the surface at 150 K with CO, but it changes to a (2 × 2) or (2 × 1) structure upon heating. Also, CO chemisorption can be modified by predissociated CO or preadsorbed oxygen on the rhenium surface. Deuterium desorbs in three peaks, starting at temperatures as low as 150 K. Ethylene desorbs partially intact at around 250 K, the rest decomposing and yielding hydrogen, that appears as two main peaks at 357 K and 460 K during thermal desorption. We conclude that epitaxially grown films may be an alternative to single crystals for studying chemisorption over well ordered surfaces.     

Infrared spectra of CO adsorbed at low temperatures on Ni

At low temperatures (1.5K–40K), CO has been found to chemisorb into terminal, bridge, and three-fold sites on evaporated Ni films. The chemisorption takes place directly, rather than through a precursor state. At least two distinct terminal sites are occupied at high coverages. After the sample is warmed from 1.5K to 40K the infrared spectra change dramatically, showing substantial surface diffusion even at these low temperatures.     

Co chemisorption on PtCu surfaces II. (1 × 1)-CO/Pt0.98Cu0.02(110)

The chemisorption of CO on the Pt atoms of an initially (1 × 3) reconstructed Pt_0.98Cu_0.02(110) surface at ~ 373 K can lead to the formation of a (1 × 1) surface. Comparisons are made with (1 × 3)-CO surfaces formed by CO exposures at 293 or 155 K. Thermal desorption shows that the (1 × 1)-CO surface has an enhanced population of high temperature CO peak ( ~ 543 K) from Pt sites. The CO-induced structural conversion also leads to a decrease in the subsequent CO uptake on the low temperature Pt sites and on the Pt-Cu “mixed” sites, with a concomitant increase in adsorption on the Cu-like sites. Such a reduction in the number of the Pt-Cu “ mixed” sites is also reflected in the CO-induced changes of the Cu 3d-derived states and the $\text{Cu 2p}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>3</mtext><mtext>2</mtext>}}$ core levels. A dynamic interplay between chemisorption and surface structure is thus demonstrated.     

Adsorption of carbon monoxide Au/Pd(1 0 0) alloys in ultrahigh vacuum: Identification of adsorption sites

The adsorption of carbon monoxide is studied on Au/Pd(1 0 0) alloys by means of reflection-absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS) and temperature-programmed desorption (TPD). The alloy was formed by adsorbing a four-monolayer thick gold film on a Pd(1 0 0) substrate and by heating to various temperatures to form alloys with a range of palladium coverages. The alloy was characterized using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and the composition of the outermost layer measured using low-energy ion scattering spectroscopy. CO adsorbs on palladium bridge sites only for palladium coverages greater than 0.5 monolayers (ML) suggesting that next-nearest neighbor sites are preferentially populated by palladium atoms. CO adsorbs on atop palladium sites and desorbs at ∼350 K corresponding to a desorption activation energy of ∼117 kJ/mol. However, at lower palladium coverages, these sites are not occupied and CO desorption states are detected 170 and 112 K corresponding to desorption activation energies of ∼53 kJ/mol and ∼35 kJ/mol, respectively, for these states. It is suggested that these states are due to a restructuring of the surface to form low-coordination gold sites that obscure the atop palladium site.