In situ x-ray photoelectron spectroscopic and density-functional studies of Si atoms adsorbed on a C60 film

The interaction between C(60) and Si atoms has been investigated for Si atoms adsorbed on a C(60) film using in situ x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and density-functional (DFT) calculations. Analysis of the Si 2p core peak identified three kinds of Si atoms adsorbed on the film: silicon suboxides (SiO(x)), bulk Si crystal, and silicon atoms bound to C(60). Based on the atomic percent ratio of silicon to carbon, we estimated that there was approximately one Si atom bound to each C(60) molecule. The Si 2p peak due to the Si-C(60) interaction demonstrated that a charge transfer from the Si atom to the C(60) molecule takes place at room temperature, which is much lower than the temperature of 670 K at which the charge transfer was observed for C(60) adsorbed on Si(001) and (111) clean surfaces [Sakamoto et al., Phys. Rev. B 60, 2579 (1999)]. The number of electrons transferred between the C(60) molecule and Si atom was estimated to be 0.59 based on XPS results, which is in good agreement with the DFT result of 0.63 for a C(60)Si with C(2v) symmetry used as a model cluster. Furthermore, the shift in binding energy of both the Si 2p and C 1s core peaks before and after Si-atom deposition was experimentally obtained to be +2.0 and -0.4 eV, respectively. The C(60)Si model cluster provides the shift of +2.13 eV for the Si 2p core peak and of -0.28 eV for the C 1s core peak, which are well corresponding to those experimental results. The covalency of the Si-C(60) interaction was also discussed in terms of Mulliken overlap population between them.     

Geometric and electronic properties of endohedral Si @ C74

The generalized gradient approximation based on density functional theory is used to analyze the geometric and electronic properties of Si @ C(74). It is found that among the five possible optimized geometries of Si @ C(74), the most favorable endohedral site of Si atom is under the center of a pentagon ring on the sigma(h) plane, i.e., Si @ C(74)-5, which is different from the center stable site for Si in C(74) calculated by the semiempirical molecular orbital calculations and molecular mechanics calculations, and it is also different from the stable site, i.e., under a [6, 6] bond along the C(2) axis on the sigma(h) plane in C(74) for metal atoms Ba, Ca, and Eu. The deformation charge density on the sigma(h) plane reveals that the Si-C bonds in Si @ C(74)-5 have covalent character, while the Mulliken charge analysis together with a longer Si-C bond length reveals that the Si-C bonds in Si @ C(74)-5 have ionic character. Therefore, we infer that Si-C bonds in Si @ C(74)-5 contain both covalent and ionic characters.     

Zwitterionic Silenes: Interesting Goals for Synthesis?

Properties of silenes, as a function of increased reversal of the Si=C bond polarity, have been examined through quantum-chemical calculations. The aim of this study was to identify silenes that can be of general interest for organic synthesis. The calculations were carried out primarily with the B3LYP hybrid density functional method, but also with the CASSCF, MP2, MP4(SDQ), and CCSD(T) methods. The study was performed on Z(2)Si=CXY compounds which were divided into three sets that differ with regard to their Si substituents (Z), and with their C substituents (X and Y) varying from weakly to strongly pi-electron-donating groups. The charge at the Si atom (q(Si)) was used as a measure of the extent of reversed silicon-carbon bond polarity. For each of the three sets, the variation in silicon-carbon bond lengths (r(Si=C)) and extent of Si pyramidalization (SigmaSi) in relation to q(Si) follow three separate curves. Silenes with strongly pi-electron-donating X and Y groups are completely described by zwitterionic (reverse-polarized) resonance structures. Such zwitterionic silenes are singly (Si=C) rather than doubly bonded (Si=C), and have a distinctly pyramidal Si atom due to negative charge localization. These silenes also have much lower heats of dimerization than the parent silene. Finally, inversion barriers of zwitterionic silenes are increased by electron-withdrawing substituents, and this enables computational design of silenes with their Si atoms as chiral centers. It is hoped that such chiral zwitterionic silenes can find use in organic synthesis.     

Density-functional study of structural and electronic properties of Si(n)C(n) (n=1-10) clusters

Density-functional theory with generalized gradient approximation for the exchange-correlation potential has been used to calculate the structural and electronic structure of Si(n)C(n) (n=1-10) clusters. The geometries are found to undergo a structural change from two dimensional to three dimensional when the cluster size n equals 4. Cagelike structures are favored as the cluster size increases. A distinct segregation between the silicon and carbon atoms is observed for these clusters. It is found that the C atoms favor to form five-membered rings as the cluster size n increases. However, the growth motif for Si atoms is not observed. The Si(n)C(n) clusters at n=2, 6, and 9 are found to possess relatively higher stability. On the basis of the lowest-energy geometries obtained, the size dependence of cluster properties such as binding energy, HOMO-LUMO gap, Mulliken charge, vibrational spectrum, and ionization potential has been computed and analyzed. The bonding characteristics of the clusters are discussed.     

Density functional calculation of intermolecular potentials

Calculations of intermolecular potentials following the density functional theory (DFT) turn out to be very complicated without using some appropriate approximations. Most often the following three approximations have been considered. In one approximation the disturbed charge distributions during collisions are reduced to sums of undisturbed charge distributions from the colliding species. In another approximation, the so-called local density approximation (LDA), one neglects the fact that the intermolecular potentials that depend on charge densities also depend on gradients in the densities. In a third approximation one assumes that the intermolecular potential can be considered as a sum of two terms: a term for the long-range geometry and a term for the short-range geometry. In this Article the three approximations mentioned will be discussed for numerical accuracy for calculations of potentials between inert gas atoms and for calculations of potentials between surfaces and inert gas atoms. In the discussion a few other approximations will be mentioned too.     

Stable highly doped C60-mSim heterofullerenes: a first principles study of C40Si20, C36Si24, and C30Si30

Geometry optimization within the framework of density functional theory provides clear evidence of stable fullerene-like cage structures for C(40)Si(20), C(36)Si(24), and C(30)Si(30). In the case of C(40)Si(20), an extensive isomer search shows that the most stable arrangements are those in which the Si atoms and the C atoms form two distinct homogeneous subnetworks. Any other configuration corresponding to spatially separated sets of Si atoms leads to a decrease of the binding energy. Due to charge transfer from Si to C atoms, opposite charges are found in neighboring Si and C sites. Structural stability is ensured via the predominant occurrence of 3-fold bonding for both species.     

A density-functional study of the structural, electronic, magnetic, and vibrational properties of Ti8C12 metallocarbohedrynes

Calculations are presented for the structural, electronic, and vibrational properties of the different Ti8C12 metallocarbohedrynes. (Please note that we adopt the name "metallocarbohedrynes" instead of "metallocarbohedrenes" to denote the acetylenic nature of C2 units in this class of clusters demonstrated by several contributions in literature.) The density-functional theory (DFT) calculations are performed with the all-electron projector augmented-wave method and generalized gradient approximation for the exchange-correlation functional. We study the seven low-energy isomers of the Ti8C12 metallocarbohedrynes using spin-polarized DFT, where we find a correlation between the number of rotated carbon dimers and the cohesive energy of the structure. The electronic density of states (eDOS) show that C3nu, D*3d, and D3d isomers are spin polarized. The partial eDOS shows that, depending on the dimer orientation, carbon atoms and a subgroup of the metal atoms form a covalent framework while other metal atoms are bonded to this framework more ionically. This picture is further supported by the charge density of the different structures, where we see that the Ti atoms with higher charge density show less contribution to the covalent bonding of the Ti-C framework. The vibrational spectra of the different structures are calculated using the frozen-vibration method. Also, we calculate the vibrational spectra of the C3nu and C2nu structures using molecular-dynamics simulations at two different temperatures. The results of the simulations demonstrate the local stability of the structures beyond the harmonic limit explored by the frozen-vibration method.     

A molecular orbital study comparing the effects of heteroatom substitution in trans-1,3-butadiene,all-trans-1,3,5-hexatriene,and benzene

To gain more understanding of the nature of the perturbation that results from heteroatom substitution in conjugated polyenes and in an aromatic ring environment, we have carried out calculations ontrans-H₂C=X(H)-CH=CH₂, all-trans-H₂C=CH-X(H)=CH-CH=CH₂, and with X = C, N, Si, and P, using the 6-31G^*(5D) basis set with full geometry optimization. Linear relationships are found between (a) the C-X and C-C bond lengths, (b) the total overlap population in the C-C, C-N, C-Si, and C-P bonds and the bond length, and (c) the total atomic charge on the N, Si, and P atoms and the corresponding C atom in the various structures, and the electronegativity of N, Si, P and C. Whereas Si is more strongly bonded in the diene and triene compared to the aromatic ring, P, like N, appears to be bonded equally well in all three structural environments.     

空位和B掺杂对Si在石墨烯上吸附的影响

利用基于密度泛函理论的第一性原理计算了空位和B替位掺杂对Si在石墨烯上吸附的影响. 结果表明: 对完整的石墨烯结构, Si吸附在桥位最稳定, Si吸附改变了石墨烯中C原子的自旋性质; 空位和B替位掺杂均加强了Si在缺陷处的吸附, 空位对Si在石墨烯上吸附的影响相对较大; B掺杂改变了Si的稳定吸附位置(由桥位移到顶位); Si在空位和B掺杂石墨烯上吸附, 体系不具有磁性; B掺杂提高了石墨烯体系的导电性能; 单空位缺陷不易形成, 结构不稳定, B掺杂结构相对较稳定.     

C59Si on the monohydride Si(100):H-(2 x 1) surface

We propose the use of the Si atom in the experimentally observed C59Si molecule as a possible way to controllably anchor fullerene molecules on a Si surface, due to the formation of a strong bond to one of the Si surface atoms. All our results are based on ab initio total energy density functional theory, and we obtain that the binding energy is on the order of 2.1 eV, approximately 1.4 eV more stable than a C60 bonded in a similar situation. A possible route to obtain such adsorption via a (C59Si)2 dimer is examined, and we find the whole process to be exothermic by approximately 0.2 eV.     

分子筛模型中非骨架离子位置的研究

从理论上研究了非骨架阳离子可能的分布位置．计算了分子筛晶体基本结构单元在整个空间的静电势分布，找出空间中静电势的各个极小点．在静电势最低点逐个放置钠离子，优化，重新计算模型分子筛的电势分布．研究了阳离子放置过程中静电势变化的趋势．     

Gas-phase structures of neutral silicon clusters

Vibrational spectra of neutral silicon clusters Si(n), in the size range of n = 6-10 and for n = 15, have been measured in the gas phase by two fundamentally different IR spectroscopic methods. Silicon clusters composed of 8, 9, and 15 atoms have been studied by IR multiple photon dissociation spectroscopy of a cluster-xenon complex, while clusters containing 6, 7, 9, and 10 atoms have been studied by a tunable IR-UV two-color ionization scheme. Comparison of both methods is possible for the Si(9) cluster. By using density functional theory, an identification of the experimentally observed neutral cluster structures is possible, and the effect of charge on the structure of neutrals and cations, which have been previously studied via IR multiple photon dissociation, can be investigated. Whereas the structures of small clusters are based on bipyramidal motifs, a trigonal prism as central unit is found in larger clusters. Bond weakening due to the loss of an electron leads to a major structural change between neutral and cationic Si(8).     

Structure and phase stability of binary zintl-phase compounds: lithium-group 13 intermetallics and metal-doped group 14 clathrate compounds

The structure/bonding relationship in a series of intermetallic phases of Li with Al, Ga, and In was investigated by density functional theory and complemented by a model based on tight-binding theory and the method of moments. The combination of these two approaches provides a simple scheme which allows for both a comprehensive understanding of structural trends and the ability to predict low-energy structures for a given composition. This analysis gives a straightforward picture of phase stability in terms of local geometric features such as triangular, square, and hexagonal arrangements of atoms. The approach was extended to examine the structural properties of metal-doped clathrate compounds of C, Si, Ge, and Sn. Clathrate-type phases based on the frameworks Si172, Ge172, Si40, and Ge40 are not only likely to be energetically favorable but may also exhibit high thermoelectric efficiency.     

Experimental Charge Density Study of a Silylone

An experimental and theoretical charge density study confirms the interpretation of (cAAC)₂Si as a silylone to be valid. Two separated VSCCs present in the non‐bonding region of the central silicon are indicative for two lone pairs. In the experiment, both the two crystallographically independent Si? C bond lengths and ellipticities vary notably. It is only the cyclohexyl derivative that shows significant differences in these values, both in the silylones and the germylones. Only by calculating increasing spheres of surrounding point charges we were able to recover the changes in the properties of the charge density distribution caused by weak intermolecular interactions. The nitrogen–carbene‐carbon bond seems to have a significant double‐bond character, indicating a singlet state for the carbene carbon, which is needed for donor acceptor bonding. Thus the sum of bond angles at the nitrogen atoms seems to be a reasonable estimate for singlet versus triplet state of cAACs.     

6H-SiC缺陷的慢正电子研究

The defect formation and annealing behavior in as-grown and electron-irradiated 6H-SiC wafers were investi-gated by variable-energy slow positron beam. For the n-type as-grown samples, it was found that annealing decreased the defect concentration due to recombination with interstitial, and when it was annealed at 1400 ±C for 30 min in vacuum, a 20 nm thick Si layer was found on the top of SiC substrate, which is a direct proof of the Si atom diffusing to the surface when annealed at the high temperature stages. During the high temperature annealing stage, we found an obvious surface effect occurred that induced the higher S parameter close to the surface. This may be caused by the diffusion of the Si atoms to the surface during annealing. After 10 MeV electron irradiation of the n-type 6H-SiC, the positron effective diffusion length decreased from 86.2 nm to 39.1 nm. This shows that there are some defects created in n-type 6H-SiC. But in the p-type 6H-SiC irradiated by 10 MeV electrons, the change is very small. This may be because of the opposite charge of the vacancy defects. The same annealing behavior as that of as-grown 6H-SiC samples was also observed for the 1.8 MeV electron-irradiated 6H-SiC samples except that after being annealed at 300 ±C, its defect concentration increased. This may be explained as the generation of carbon vacancies, due to either the recombination between divacancies and silicon interstitial, or the charge of the charge states.     

Molecular dynamics simulations of beta-SiC using both fixed charge and variable charge models

In this paper, molecular dynamics simulations have been performed using both fixed charge and variable charge models. In the fixed charge model, partial charges are introduced to Si and C atoms to model the charge transfer observed in first principles studies. The calculated phonon dispersions, elastic constants, and lattice constants are in good accuracy. Variable charge model is also used to obtain geometry and connectivity dependent atomic charges. Our results show that although the variable charge model may not be advantageous in the study of ordered structures, it is important in describing structural disorders such as vacancies.     

Energy density analysis of cluster size dependence of surface-molecule interactions: H2, C2H2, C2H4, and CO adsorption onto Si(100)-(2x1) surface

Adsorption of H2, C2H2, C2H4, and CO onto a Si(100)-(2x1) surface has been treated theoretically using Si(12n - 3)H(8n + 4) (n = 1-4) clusters. The energy density analysis (EDA) proposed by Nakai has been adopted to examine surface-molecule interactions for different cluster sizes. EDA results for the largest model cluster Si45H36 have shown that the adsorption-induced energy density variation in Si atoms decays with distance from the adsorption site. Analysis of this decay, which can be carried out using the EDA technique, is important because it enables verification of the reliability of the model cluster used. In the cases of H2, C2H2, C2H4, and CO adsorption onto the Si(100)-(2x1) surface, it is found that at least a Si21H20 cluster is necessary to treat the surface-molecule interaction with chemical accuracy.     

First principles calculations of electronic structures and metal mobility of Na(x)Si(46) and Na(x)Si(34) clathrates

Energetics, geometry, electronic band structures, and charge transfer for Na(x)Si(46) and Na(x)Si(34) clathrates with different degrees of cavity filling by sodium, and the mobility of the Na atom inside the different cavities are studied using first principles density functional calculations within the generalized gradient approximation. The stabilization of the clathrate lattice and the cell volume variation upon the inclusion of Na (which appears to move easily in the larger cavities of Na(x)Si(34), thus justifying the experimental observations) are discussed in connection with the onset of the repulsion between Na and Si for distances shorter than approximately 3.4 A. For all degrees of filling of the different cavities examined we find that the electron population of the s orbitals in the partially ionized Na atoms increases with a decrease in the size of the cavity, and that the Na states contribute significantly to the density of states at the Fermi level and thus influence the properties of these compounds.     

Influence of oxygen/sulfur-termination on electronic structure and surface electrostatic potential of (6,0) carbon nanotube: a DFT study

A density functional theory study was carried out to investigate the electronic and structural properties of oxygen- and sulfur-terminated models of zigzag (6,0) carbon nanotube (CNT). In general, the C–C bond lengths are significantly changed upon O/S-termination in the considered models. Our calculations indicate that due to the O/S-doping at the tip(s) of pristine CNT, the evaluated electron density tends to increase slightly at the axial C–C bond critical points. In order to characterize and provide valuable information of the origin of noncovalent interactions, electrostatic potentials are computed on the surface of the CNTs. Our results reveal that the characteristic surface patterns are considerably influenced by O/S-termination and the dopant atoms tend to activate the surface toward electrophilic/radical attack.