Adsorption of halogens on metal surfaces

This paper presents a review of the experimental and theoretical investigations of halogen interaction with metal surfaces. The emphasis was placed on the recent measurements performed with a scanning tunneling microscope in combination with density functional theory calculations. The surface structures formed on metal surface after halogen interaction are classified into three groups: chemisorbed monolayer, surface halide, bulk-like halide. Formation of monolayer structures is described in terms of surface phase transitions. Surface halide phases are considered to be intermediates between chemisorbed halogen and bulk halide. The modern theoretical approaches in studying the dynamics of metal halogenation reactions are also presented.     

Recurrence Spectra of the Rydberg Hydrogen Atom near Two Parallel Metal Surfaces

Using closed orbit theory, we study the influence of the two parallel metal surfaces on the recurrence spectra of a hydrogen atom placed in the region between the two surfaces. The results show that the metal surfaces have significant effect on the photoabsorption process. Each resonance peak in the recurrence spectra is associated with one electronic closed orbit. In our work, we put the first metal surface at the critical value dc and vary the second metal surface. The results show that when the distances between the hydrogen atom and the two metal surfaces are close to the critical valuedc, the number of the closed orbits is the greatest and there are more peaks in the recurrence spectra. When the distance between the atom and the second metal surface is larger or smaller than dc, the number of the closed orbits decreases and there are fewer peaks in the recurrence spectra. The agreement between the semiclassical calculation spectra and the quantum calculation spectra suggests that our analysis is correct.     

Observation of Simplest Water Chains on Surface Stabilized by a Hydroxyl Group at One End

The key to fully understanding water-solid interfaces relies on the microscopic nature of hydrogen bond networks,including their atomic structures, interfacial interactions, and dynamic behaviors. Here, we report the observation of two types of simplest water chains on Au(111) surface which is expected unstable according to the rules of hydrogen network on noble metal surfaces. A common feature at the end of chain structures is revealed in high resolution scanning tunneling microscopy images. To explain the stability in observed hydrogen bond networks,we propose a structure model of the water chains terminated with a hydroxyl group. The model is consistent with detailed image analysis and molecular manipulation. The observation of simplest water chains suggests a new platform for exploring fundamental physics in hydrogen bond networks on surfaces.     

The UBI-QEP method: Mechanistic and kinetic studies of heterogeneous catalytic reactions

Applications of the unity bond index-quadratic exponential potential (UBI-QEP) method in mechanistic and kinetic studies of complex heterogeneous catalytic reactions are discussed. It is shown how UBI-QEP energetics helps to answer specific questions regarding the mechanisms of various reactions on metal surfaces. Examples of the following reactions are considered: elementary reactions of hydrogen transfer (from one carbon atom connected to the metal surface to another such atom in a different surface species), H-X bond breaking with the assistance of coadsorbed oxygen, methanol synthesis, Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, ammonia synthesis and decomposition, and partial methanol oxidation to formaldehyde. Then, examples of kinetic simulations using UBI-QEP energetics are considered for the following processes: ethane hydrogenolysis, watergas shift reaction, selective hydrogenation of acetylene in ethylene-rich mixtures, oxidative conversions of hydrogen and methane on Pt and Rh surfaces, ammonia decomposition, C₁–C₂ product formation in Fischer-Tropsch synthesis over cobalt, and steam reforming of methane. It is shown how the use of UBI-QEP and Monte Carlo methods makes it possible to calculate reaction parameters that depend on temperature in the equilibrium and kinetic regimes. To increase the accuracy of simulations, we added nonenergetic parameters affecting energetics at nonzero coverages: a spatial constraint on the distance between adsorbed atoms and the distance of hot atom traveling upon oxygen dissociation on metal surfaces. The UBI-QEP/Monte Carlo simulation method is illustrated by the study of molecular oxygen adsorption on single crystalline nickel surfaces. In most UBI-QEP-based mechanistic and kinetic studies of heterogeneous catalytic reactions, good agreement is observed with experimental observations, in many cases on a quantitative level. Taking into account diversity of reactions to which the method has been applied the agreement with experiments supports the efficiency of the method in solving mechanistic and kinetic problems.     

氢在担载金属表面的吸附研究

应用格林函数方法在紧束缚近似下研究了氢在担载金属表面的吸附性质。采用自洽的Anderson-Newns吸附模型,对氢在Pt/ZnO,Cu/ZnO和Ni/ZnO三种担载式复合体系表面的吸附能△E、吸附态能级E_ad作了计算,并讨论了金属簿层在ZnO衬底上的沉积厚度及金属-衬底相互作用对氢在该类复合体系表面的吸附性质的影响。计算表明,金属-衬底相互作用越强,氢在Pt(Cu,Ni)/ZnO体系表面的吸附能及电荷转移量越小。金属-衬底相互作用抑制了氢在金属表面的吸附。衬底对金属表面吸附性质的影 关键词：     

Electronic excitations by chemical reactions on metal surfaces

Dissipation of chemical energy released in exothermic reactions at metal surfaces may happen adiabatically by creation of phonons or non-adiabatically by excitation of the electronic system of the metal or the reactants. In the past decades, the only direct experimental evidence for such non-adiabatic reactions has been exoelectron emission into vacuum and surface chemiluminescence which are observed in a special class of very exothermic reactions. The creation of e–h pairs in the metal has been discussed in many theoretical models but it was only recently that a novel experimental approach using Schottky diodes with ultrathin metal films makes direct measurement of reaction-induced hot electrons and holes possible. The chemical reaction creates hot charge carriers which travel ballistically from the metal film surface toward the Schottky interface and are detected as a chemicurrent in the diode. By now, such currents have been observed during adsorption of atomic hydrogen and deuterium on Ag, Cu and Fe surfaces as well as chemisorption of atomic and molecular oxygen, of NO and NO₂ molecules and of certain hydrocarbons on Ag. This paper reviews briefly exoelectron and chemiluminescence experiments and the concept of the Nørskov–Newns–Lundqvist model. The major part is devoted to the detection of chemically induced e–h pairs with thin metal film Si Schottky diodes by discussing the different influences on the chemicurrent magnitude and presenting experimental results predominantly with hydrogen and deuterium atoms. The experiments introduce a new method to investigate surface reaction kinetics and dynamics by use of an electronic device. In addition, the diodes may be used as selective reactive gas sensors.     

Characterization of diamond (1 0 0) surface with oxygen termination

Ab initio density functional theory (DFT) was employed to study reconstructions of diamond (1 0 0) surfaces in the presence of hydrogen, oxygen and hydroxyl. Clean and (2 × 1):1H surfaces are taken as reference. The properties of oxidization diamond surfaces with several adsorption structures, namely, O-on-top (OT) site, O-bridge (BR) site, hydroxyl (-OH), hydroxyl/hydroxyl, OT/hydroxyl, BR/hydroxyl have been considered. The calculated results indicate that the BR model is much more stable than the OT model, and the most energetically favorable structures of oxygenated surfaces are those with chemisorbed hydroxyl (-OH) group. Furthermore, the stability of the structures is also discussed from the point of HOMO-LUMO gap. Analysis of electronic structures shows that the presence of hydrogen induces surface conductivity whereas oxygen weakens it.     

On the Production of Methane by Electrical Arcs in Ultra High Vacuum

By mass spectrometry of residual gas in UHV-arc-chambers a cycle of production of methane has been found for clean electrodes, consisting in release of hydrogen during the arc, its re-adsorption on freshly formed metal surfaces, followed by surface reactions of hydrogen with carbon impurities, and finally desorption of the resulting methane at room temperature after the arc. Existing methane is decomposed in part during an arc. In the pressure region ≦ 10^?4 Pa most of the residual gas is transformed to CH₄ if the electrodes contain metals with high gettering activity.     

Adsorption of thiophene on Ni(1 0 0), Cu(1 0 0), and Pd(1 0 0) surfaces: ab initio periodic density functional study

Adsorption of thiophene on the (1 0 0) surfaces of Ni, Cu, and Pd has been investigated by the ab initio density functional theory method (periodic DMol³). Several parallel and perpendicular adsorption geometries are examined in detail. For Ni(1 0 0), both dissociative and molecular adsorption structures are found with small difference in energy. Thiophene adsorbs only molecularly on Cu(1 0 0) and Pd(1 0 0). The most stable molecular adsorption structures on all the surfaces are quite similar, where thiophene adsorbs on top of a 4-fold hollow with the symmetry axis rotated 45° from the metal rows. These stable structures arise from a good matching of the thiophene molecule to the metal surfaces. The calculated adsorption geometries are in reasonable agreement with XAFS experiments.     

Theoretical kinetics study of thymine tautomerism and interaction of Na+ with its tautomers

The current work is a theoretical study of the tautomerism of thymine in the gas phase. Eighteen structures were found in the isomerisation reaction of thymine, some of which are reported for the first time. Thirty hydrogen transfer reactions were carried out. In 24 of the reactions, the hydrogen abstractions N―H→O, N―H→C and C―H→O were considered. The potential energy surface for all trajectories was determined for 18 tautomers and 40 transition states. The RRKM-TST model was used to calculate the rate constants of the reactions to examine their kinetics. Nonlinear least-squares fitting was used to calculate the rate constants expressions. The interaction of sodium ion and tautomers in the gas phase was also investigated. Three types of interaction of metal cations with thymine were found. In the first, metal cations interact with a lone pair of nitrogen or oxygen tautomers. The second type is the interaction of metal cations with two nitrogen and oxygen of tautomers. The last type is the interaction of metal cations and the electron density of the π-system of thymine in which the metal ion is perpendicular to the ring of tautomers. The stability ranking of the thymine tautomers and their complexes was also determined.     

Clustering of chemisorbed H(D) atoms on the graphite (0001) surface due to preferential sticking

We present scanning tunneling microscopy experiments and density functional theory calculations which reveal a unique mechanism for the formation of hydrogen adsorbate clusters on graphite surfaces. Our results show that diffusion of hydrogen atoms is largely inactive and that clustering is a consequence of preferential sticking into specific adsorbate structures. These surprising findings are caused by reduced or even vanishing adsorption barriers for hydrogen in the vicinity of already adsorbed H atoms on the surface and point to a possible novel route to interstellar H2 formation.     

PEEM study of work function changes in Cu, Au and Pd metal surfaces with surface acoustic wave propagation

The effects of surface acoustic wave (SAW) on the work function of Cu, Au and Pd metal surfaces with different surface structures were studied by photoelectron emission microscopy (PEEM). SAW propagation produced bright PEEM images for Cu, Au and Pd metal surfaces consisting of high-index planes and step sites, whereas it yielded dark images for the metals exposing low-index planes, indicating that the SAW enhanced photoemission from rough metal surfaces containing coordinatively-unsaturated metal atoms and lowered that from densely packed smooth metal surfaces. Changes in the PEEM images with SAW-on and SAW-off were reversible and were associated with decreases and increases in the work function of the metal surfaces, respectively. The SAW caused periodic and vertical lattice displacement, and it was demonstrated that large lattice displacement was responsible for work function changes from coincidence between the patterns of photoemission and lattice displacement. A mechanism for work function changes is proposed on the basis of effects on the spatial structures and electronic properties of metal surfaces.     

Real time chemical dynamics at surfaces

It is a major goal in surface science to make movies of molecules on surfaces, in which the reaction of the molecules on the surface can be followed on a femtosecond time scale, with sub-nanometer resolution. By moving the actors (the molecules) to precisely determined positions on the stage (the surface) at some well-defined moment in time, and subsequently making a space- and time-resolved documentary of what happens next, we would be able to understand the reactive interactions between molecules on surfaces in the greatest possible detail. This would enable us to set the stage and bring together the actors in such a way as to produce the chemical outcomes our society needs, by improving existing catalysts and designing novel catalysts, and by engineering novel reactions on surfaces. Any future director of such movies needs to know which techniques (i.e., which theoretical and experimental methods) hold promise for movie making, what has been done with these techniques, and what can be done with appropriate extensions. The methods we discuss are: (i) the time-dependent wave packet method, which is a theoretical method for simulating molecule–surface reactions with sub-nanometer resolution on a femtosecond time scale, (ii) molecular beam experiments, which allow detailed investigation of the molecule–surface interaction at a molecular level, and (iii) time-resolved laser pump–probe experiments, which allow reactions to be studied with femtosecond resolution. In particular, we discuss (i) theoretical studies of the dissociation reaction of hydrogen on metal surfaces, the reactive system presently understood at the greatest level of detail, (ii) the reactive and non-reactive scattering of heavy diatomics (NO,CO) from metal surfaces, and (iii) the competition between reaction of coadsorbed CO with O and desorption of CO, again on a metal surface. We examine possibilities to extend these methods to make movies at the desired level of detail. We also discuss which reactions are likely to provide good material for plots of movies that will be exciting for future generations of surface scientists.     

Nuclear Reactions in Micro/Nano-Scale Metal Particles

Low-energy nuclear reactions in micro/nano-scale metal particles are described based on the theory of Bose–Einstein condensation nuclear fusion (BECNF). The BECNF theory is based on a single basic assumption capable of explaining the observed LENR phenomena; deuterons in metals undergo Bose–Einstein condensation. The BECNF theory is also a quantitative predictive physical theory. Experimental tests of the basic assumption and theoretical predictions are proposed. Potential application to energy generation by ignition at low temperatures is described. Generalized theory of BECNF is used to carry out theoretical analyses of recently reported experimental results for hydrogen–nickel system.     

Interaction of hydrogen with (2 1 0)-oriented metal surfaces: Molecular precursors,chemisorbed atoms and subsurface states

Some selected aspects of hydrogen interaction with metal surfaces are surveyed with emphasis on the formation of molecular precursor states on surfaces that are normally known to readily and spontaneously dissociate hydrogen molecules (Ni, Pd, Rh). We will demonstrate that the crystallographic (2 1 0) orientation of the face-centered cubic (“f.c.c”) lattice seems to provide a particular route for stabilizing a (weakly) chemisorbed H₂ species notwithstanding the ordinary H₂ dissociative chemisorption and – in the Pd case – subsurface H state formation. This molecular hydrogen species – although or just because it is bound with an adsorption energy of merely ～20–25 kJ/mole may play an essential role both in heterogeneously catalysed surface and hydrogen uptake reactions that precede, e.g., H storage in solid materials.     

Photodetachment of H− near a Dielectric-Covered Metal Surface

We combine a simple model potential with closed-orbit theory to study the photodetachment of H^? near a dielectric-covered metal surface. We calculate photodetachment cross sections to show that the chemisorption of a dielectric thin layer on the metal surface can significantly affect the photodetachment of negative ions. Compared to the photodetachment of hydrogen negative ions near clean metallic surfaces, our calculated cross sections show stronger oscillations, the amplitude of the oscillation growing with the layer thickness. For fixed thickness, the amplitude depends on the dielectric constant and on the metallic surface. We expect our study to guide future experimental studies of negative-ion photodetachment from dielectric-covered metallic surfaces.     

Self-organized nanostructures in surface chemical reactions: Mechanisms and mesoscopic modeling

Nanoscale patterns can form in reactive adsorbates on catalytic surfaces as a result of attractive lateral interactions. These structures can be described within a mesoscopic theory that is derived by coarse graining the microscopic master equation thus providing a link between microscopic lattice models and reaction-diffusion equations. Such mesoscopic models allow to systematically investigate mechanisms responsible for the formation of nanoscale nonequilibrium patterns in reactive condensed matter. We have found that stationary and traveling nanostructures may result from the interplay of the attractive lateral interactions and nonequilibrium reactions. Besides reviewing these results, a detailed investigation of a single reactive adsorbate in the presence of attractive lateral interactions and global coupling through the gas phase is presented. Finally, it is outlined how a mesoscopic theory should be constructed for a particular scanning tunneling microscopy experiment [the oxidation of hydrogen on a Pt(111) surface] in order to overcome the failure of a corresponding reaction-diffusion model to quantitatively reproduce the experiments. (c) 2002 American Institute of Physics.