Six-dimensional quantum dynamics of dissociative chemisorption of H2 on Ru(0001)

Six-dimensional quantum dynamics calculations on dissociative chemisorption of H(2) on Ru(0001) are performed. The six-dimensional potential energy surface is generated using density functional theory. Two different generalized gradient approximations are used, i.e., RPBE and PW91, to allow the results to be compared. The dissociation probability for normally incident H(2) on a clean Ru(0001) surface is calculated. Large differences between the reaction probabilities calculated using the RPBE and PW91 are seen, with the PW91 results showing a much narrower reaction probability curve and a much higher reactivity. Using the reaction probabilities and assuming normal energy scaling reaction rates are generated for temperatures between 300 and 800 K. The rate generated using the PW91 results is higher by about a factor 5 than the rate based on the RPBE results in the range of temperatures relevant to ammonia production.     

Reactive and nonreactive scattering of N2 from Ru(0001): a six-dimensional adiabatic study

We have studied the dissociative chemisorption and scattering of N(2) on and from Ru(0001), using a six-dimensional quasiclassical trajectory method. The potential energy surface, which depends on all the molecular degrees of freedom, has been built applying a modified Shepard interpolation method to a data set of results from density functional theory, employing the RPBE generalized gradient approximation. The frozen surface and Born-Oppenheimer [Ann. Phys. (Leipzig) 84, 457 (1927)] approximations were used, neglecting phonons and electron-hole pair excitations. Dissociative chemisorption probabilities are found to be very small even for translational energies much higher than the minimum reaction barrier, in good agreement with experiment. A comparison to previous low dimensional calculations shows the importance of taking into account the multidimensional effects of N(2) rotation and translation parallel to the surface. The new calculations strongly suggest a much smaller role of nonadiabatic effects than previously assumed on the basis of a comparison between low dimensional results and experiments [J. Chem. Phys. 115, 9028 (2001)]. Also in agreement with experiment, our theoretical results show a strong dependence of reaction on the initial vibrational state. Computed angular scattering distributions and parallel translation energy distributions are in good agreement with experiments on scattering, but the theory overestimates vibrational and rotational excitations in scattering.     

Off-normal incidence dissociative sticking of H2 on Cu(100) studied using six-dimensional quantum calculations

Six-dimensional quantum calculations of the sticking probability for H2 hitting a Cu(100) surface with off-normal incidence are presented. The multiconfiguration time-dependent Hartree approach is employed for an efficient wave-packet propagation. The sticking probability is calculated for different initial momenta parallel to the surface. In contrast with the picture described in the literature, the sticking probability was found to depend on the parallel momentum. The results are explained by the topology of the potential-energy surface, which shows significant corrugation with a moderate variation of the barrier height with the surface site.     

Six-dimensional quantum dynamics of H2 dissociative adsorption on the Pt(211) stepped surface

Results of experimental studies, and theoretical calculations utilizing classical trajectories, have shown that dissociation of H2 on the Pt(211) stepped surface is enhanced at low energies by a molecular trapping mechanism. Because quantum effects can play a large role at the low energies and long lifetimes that characterize molecular trapping, we have undertaken quantum dynamics calculations for this system, the first to treat all molecular degrees of freedom of a gas molecule reacting on a stepped metallic surface. The calculations show that molecular trapping persists in the quantum system, but only at much lower energies than experimentally seen, pointing to possible deficiencies in the potential energy surface. Classical and quasiclassical trajectory calculations on the same potential provide a reasonable picture of reaction overall, but many of the finer details are inaccurate, and certain classical reaction mechanisms are entirely invalid. We conclude that some skepticism should be shown toward any classical study for which long-lived trapping states play a role.     

Mechanisms of H2 dissociative adsorption on the Pt(211) stepped surface

We utilize classical trajectory calculations to study the reaction dynamics of the dissociative adsorption of H2 on the stepped Pt(211) surface. The potential-energy surface has been obtained through an accurate interpolation of density-functional theory data at the generalized gradient approximation level, using the corrugation reduction procedure. New techniques for visualizing the collective dynamics of trajectories are introduced to elucidate the reaction mechanisms involved. Reaction exhibits a nonmonotonic dependence on collision energy, first decreasing with energy, and then increasing. A strong component of direct nonactivated reaction exists at the top edge of the step over the entire range of energies. The inverse relationship between reaction and collision energy at low energies is attributed to trapping in weak chemisorption wells. These wells also influence the direct reaction at the step, leading to a strong asymmetric dependence on incidence angle. Reaction on the terrace is activated, and only contributes significantly at high energies. Agreement with experiments on Pt(533) [A. T. Gee, B. E. Hayden, C. Mormiche, and T. S. Nunney, J. Chem. Phys. 112, 7660 (2000); Surf. Sci. 512, 165 (2002)] is good, and we are able to suggest new interpretations of the experimental data.     

Oxygen adsorption on Pt/Ru(0001) layers

Chemical properties of epitaxially grown bimetallic layers may deviate substantially from the behavior of their constituents. Strain in conjunction with electronic effects due to the nearby interface represent the dominant contribution to this modification. One of the simplest surface processes to characterize reactivity of these substrates is the dissociative adsorption of an incoming homo-nuclear diatomic molecule. In this study, the adsorption of O(2) on various epitaxially grown Pt films on Ru(0001) has been investigated using infrared absorption spectroscopy and thermal desorption spectroscopy. Pt/Ru(0001) has been chosen as a model system to analyze the individual influences of lateral strain and of the residual substrate interaction on the energetics of a dissociative adsorption system. It is found that adsorption and dissociative sticking depends dramatically on Pt film thickness. Even though oxygen adsorption proceeds in a straightforward manner on Pt(111) and Ru(0001), molecular chemisorption of oxygen on Pt/Ru(0001) is entirely suppressed for the Pt/Ru(0001) monolayer. For two Pt layers chemisorbed molecular oxygen on Pt terraces is produced, albeit at a very slow rate; however, no (thermally induced) dissociation occurs. Only for Pt layer thicknesses N(Pt) ≥ 3 sticking gradually speeds up and annealing leads to dissociation of O(2), thereby approaching the behavior for oxygen adsorption on genuine Pt(111). For Pt monolayer films a novel state of chemisorbed O(2), most likely located at step edges of Pt monolayer islands is identified. This state is readily populated which precludes an activation barrier towards adsorption, in contrast to adsorption on terrace sites of the Pt/Ru(0001) monolayer.     

Quantum chemical prediction of reaction pathways and rate constants for dissociative adsorption of CO(x) and NO(x) on the graphite (0001) surface

We present predictions of reaction rate constants for dissociative adsorption reactions of CO(x) (x = 1, 2) and NO(x) (x = 1, 2) molecules on the basal graphite (0001) surface based on potential energy surfaces (PES) obtained by the integrated ONIOM(B3LYP:DFTB-D) quantum chemical hybrid approach with dispersion-augmented density functional tight binding (DFTB-D) as low level method. Following an a priori methodology developed in a previous investigation of water dissociative adsorption reactions on graphite, we used a C(94)H(24) dicircumcoronene graphene slab as model system for the graphite surface in finite-size molecular structure investigations, and single adsorbate molecules reacting with the pristine graphene sheet. By employing the ONIOM PES information in RRKM theory we predict reaction rate constants in the temperature range between 1,000 and 5,000 K. We find that among CO(x) and NO(x) adsorbate species, the dissociative adsorption reactions of CO(2) and both radical species NO and NO(2) are likely candidates as a cause for high temperature oxidation and erosion of graphite (0001) surfaces, whereas reaction with CO is not likely to lead to long-lived surface defects. High temperature quantum chemical molecular dynamics simulations (QM/MD) at T = 5,000 K using on-the-fly DFTB-D energies and gradients confirm the results of our PES study.     

Multiconfigurational time-dependent Hartree calculations for dissociative adsorption of H2 on Cu(100)

The efficiency of the multiconfigurational time-dependent Hartree (MCTDH) method for calculating the initial-state selected dissociation probability of H(2)(v=0,j=0) on Cu(100) is investigated. The MCTDH method is shown to be significantly more efficient than standard wave packet methods. A large number of single-particle functions is required to converge the initial-state selected reaction probability for dissociative adsorption. Employing multidimensional coordinates in the MCTDH ansatz (mode combination) is found to be crucial for the efficiency of these MCTDH calculations. Perspectives towards the application of the MCTDH approach to study dissociative adsorption of polyatomic molecules on surfaces are discussed.     

Calculations of scattering of N2 molecules from Ru(0001)

Recent experimental measurements of state resolved scattering of nitrogen molecules from a Ru(0001) surface are discussed in comparison with a mixed quantum-classical theory that has given reasonable explanations for similar data on other systems. Acceptable agreement between data and calculations is obtained, but only upon assuming an effective mass of the surface equal to 2.3 times the mass of a single Ru atom.     

Reactivity of V2O3(0001) surfaces: molecular vs dissociative adsorption of water

The adsorption of water on V2O3(0001) surfaces has been investigated by thermal desorption spectroscopy, high-resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy with use of synchrotron radiation. The V2O3(0001) surfaces have been generated in epitaxial thin film form on a Rh(111) substrate with three different surface terminations according to the particular preparation conditions. The stable surface in thermodynamic equilibrium with the bulk is formed by a vanadyl (VO) (1x1) surface layer, but an oxygen-rich (radical3xradical3)R30 degrees reconstruction can be prepared under a higher chemical potential of oxygen (microO), whereas a V-terminated surface consisting of a vanadium surface layer requires a low microO, which can be achieved experimentally by the deposition of V atoms onto the (1x1) VO surface. The latter two surfaces have been used to model, in a controlled way, oxygen and vanadium containing defect centres on V2O3. On the (1x1) V=O and (radical3xradical3)R30 degrees surfaces, which expose only oxygen surface sites, the experimental results indicate consistently that the molecular adsorption of water provides the predominant adsorption channel. In contrast, on the V-terminated (1/radical3x1/radical3)R30 degrees surface the dissociation of water and the formation of surface hydroxyl species at 100 K is readily observed. Besides the dissociative adsorption a molecular adsorption channel exists also on the V-terminated V2O3(0001) surface, so that the water monolayer consists of both OH and molecular H2O species. The V surface layer on V2O3 is very reactive and is reoxidised by adsorbed water at 250 K, yielding surface vanadyl species. The results of this study indicate that V surface centres are necessary for the dissociation of water on V2O3 surfaces.     

Kinetics of dissociative adsorption on stepped surfaces of platinum

The kinetics of dissociative adsorption of oxygen was studied by the Monte Carlo method for a model which supposed that absorption occurs with a high rate only on steps and that O_ads may migrate from steps onto terraces and backward. At the relatively low activation energy of diffusion from steps onto terraces E_dif∼ 75 kJ/mol (E_dif is lower by 4 kJ/mol in the back direction), the function log(s(θ)), wheres is the sticking coefficient and θ is the surface coverage by oxygen atoms, is almost linear at 300 K; that is, the Roginskii-Elovich adsorption equation is obeyed. If it is supposed that the bonding energy of adatoms on terraces is slightly higher than that on steps, and the sticking coefficient is constant and equal to s₀ up to high degrees of coverage as well as in the model of the kinetics of adsorption with a precursor state. Deceased.     

The growth of perylene on Ru(0001)

The structure of perylene adsorbed on Ru(0001) surface has been studied by ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy (UPS) and low-energy electron diffraction. An ordered p(4x4) structure is observed from a monolayer (about 4 A thickness) of the perylene on Ru(0001) surface. UPS measurements show the molecular features, from the perylene multiplayer, between 2 and 10 eV below the Fermi level. Angle-resolved ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy measurements suggest that the perylene molecular plane is parallel to the substrate. Temperature dependent UPS measurements show that the perylene multilayer is stable on Ru(0001) surface up to 125 degrees C. The desorption of the multilayer and the decomposition of the monolayer are observed above 125 degrees C.     

Adsorption and thermal evolution of SO2 on Ru(0001)

Using high resolution S 2p and O 1s x-ray photoelectron spectroscopies, the adsorption of SO2 and its surface bound reaction products on Ru(0001) have been investigated simultaneously while dosing SO2 and while heating the adsorbed species. SO2 is found to adsorb on Ru(0001) at 100 K molecularly in two variants as well as dissociatively and to react to SO3, SO4, SO, and S with increasing coverage. After the monolayer has been saturated, SO2 adsorbs molecularly in multilayers. When heating adsorbed SO2 from 100 K, SO, SO2, and SO4 decompose in a wide temperature range up to 305 K. In contrast SO3 is found to be stable bound to Ru(0001) up to 300 K and to disappear from the surface to below 325 K. At 550 K the surface remains with a saturated atomic sulfur and oxygen layer and some sulfur species in a second layer. Our quantitative analysis of the sulfur amount bound to the surface supports a simple desorption process only for SO4. All other species mainly or partly decompose on the surface.     

Six-dimensional potential energy surface for H2 at Ru(0001)

The six-dimensional (6D) potential energy surface (PES) for the H(2) molecule interacting with a clean Ru(0001) surface has been computed accurately for the first time. Density functional theory (DFT) and a pseudopotential based periodic plane-wave approach have been used to calculate the electronic interactions between the molecule and the surface. Two different generalized gradient approximation (GGA) exchange-correlation functionals, PW91 and RPBE, have been adopted. Based on the DFT/GGA calculated potential energies, an analytical 6D PES has been constructed using the corrugation reducing procedure. A very accurate representation of the DFT/GGA data has been achieved, with an average error in the interpolation of about 3 meV and a maximum error not larger than about 30 meV. The top site is found to be the most reactive site for both functionals used, but PW91 predicts a higher reactivity than RPBE, with lower-energy and earlier-located dissociation barriers. The energetic corrugation displayed by the RPBE PES is larger than the PW91 PES while the geometric corrugation is smaller. The differences between the two PESs increase as the distance of the molecular center of mass to the surface decreases. A direct comparison with experimental investigations on H(2)/Ru(0001) could shed light on the suitability of these XC potentials often used in DFT calculations.     

CO Blocking of D2 Dissociative Adsorption on Ru(0001)

The influence of pre‐adsorbed CO on the dissociative adsorption of D₂ on Ru(0001) is studied by molecular‐beam techniques. We determine the initial dissociation probability of D₂ as a function of its kinetic energy for various CO pre‐coverages between 0.00 and 0.67 monolayers (ML) at a surface temperature of 180 K. The results indicate that CO blocks D₂ dissociation and perturbs the local surface reactivity up to the nearest‐neighbour Ru atoms. Non‐activated sticking and dissociation become less important with increasing CO coverage, and vanish at θ_CO≈0.33 ML. In addition, at high D₂ kinetic energy (>35 kJ mol^?1) the site‐blocking capability of CO decreases rapidly. These observations are attributed to a CO‐induced activation barrier for D₂ dissociation in the vicinity of CO molecules.     

Rotational effects in the dissociative adsorption of H2 on the Pt211 stepped surface

Rotational effects in the dissociative adsorption of H2 on the Pt211 stepped surface have been studied using classical trajectory calculations on a six-dimensional, density-functional theory potential-energy surface. Reaction of rotating molecules via an indirect trapping mechanism exhibits an unexpected nonmonotonic dependence on the initial rotational quantum number J. Indirect reaction is first quenched with increasing J but is enhanced again for high J initial states. The quenching is attributed to rotational-to-translational energy transfer, which facilitates escape from the chemisorption wells responsible for molecular trapping. For high J, rotational and translational motions decouple, and the energy transfer is no longer possible, which leads again to trapping. Degeneracy-resolved calculations show that for high initial J, molecules rotating in a "cartwheel" fashion (mJ=0) are more likely to become trapped and react indirectly than "helicoptering" molecules (mJ=J). Experimental confirmation of this finding would lend strong support to the existence of the chemisorption wells that trap molecules prior to reaction.     

Deposition and crystallization studies of thin amorphous solid water films on Ru(0001) and on CO-precovered Ru(0001)

The deposition and the isothermal crystallization kinetics of thin amorphous solid water (ASW) films on both Ru(0001) and CO-precovered Ru(0001) have been investigated in real time by simultaneously employing helium atom scattering, infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy, and isothermal temperature-programmed desorption. During ASW deposition, the interaction between water and the substrate depends critically on the amount of preadsorbed CO. However, the mechanism and kinetics of the crystallization of approximately 50 layers thick ASW film were found to be independent of the amount of preadsorbed CO. We demonstrate that crystallization occurs through random nucleation events in the bulk of the material, followed by homogeneous growth, for solid water on both substrates. The morphological change involving the formation of three-dimensional grains of crystalline ice results in the exposure of the water monolayer just above the substrate to the vacuum during the crystallization process on both substrates.     

Differential reaction cross sections from rotationally resolved quantum scattering calculations: application to gas-phase S(N)2 reactions

Differential reaction cross sections have been computed based on previous rotationally resolved time-independent quantum-mechanical scattering calculations for the complex-forming S(N)2 reaction Cl(-) + CH(3)Br → ClCH(3) + Br(-). The results show almost isotropic cross sections for reactant molecules with high rotational quantum numbers. Backward scattering is disfavoured for reaction out of states with small rotational excitation, in particular the rovibrational ground state. This is a quantum-mechanical effect (interference of partial waves) that can partly be rationalized by simple classical arguments. In particular for higher vibrational excitations, an umbrella effect can be observed that favours the backward direction. It can be explained by the strong enhancement of the reactivity by opening a direct mechanism. The ion-dipole interaction exerts a torque onto the molecule which carries out a rotation by about 90° and then completes the reaction.