Interaction of CO and deuterium with bimetallic, monolayer Pt-island/film covered Ru(0001) surfaces

The adsorption properties of structurally well defined bimetallic Pt/Ru(0001) surfaces, consisting of a Ru(0001) substrate partly or fully covered by monolayer Pt islands or a monolayer Pt film, were studied by temperature programmed desorption (TPD) using CO and deuterium as probe molecules. Additionally, the adsorption of CO was investigated by infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRAS). The presence of the pseudomorphic platinum islands or monolayer film leads to considerable modifications of the adsorption properties for both adsorbates, both on the Pt covered and, to a smaller extent, on the bare Ru part of the surfaces. In addition to distinct weakly bound adspecies, which are adsorbed on the monolayer Pt islands, we find unique contributions from island edge desorption, from spill-over processes during the desorption run, and a general down-shift of the peak related to desorption from Pt-free Ru(0001) areas with increasing Pt coverage. These effects, which we consider as characteristic for adsorption on bimetallic surfaces with large contiguous areas of the respective types, are discussed in detail.     

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.     

Water adsorption, desorption, and clustering on FeO(111)

The adsorption of water on FeO(111) is investigated using temperature programmed desorption (TPD) and infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRAS). Well-ordered 2 ML thick FeO(111) films are grown epitaxially on a Pt(111) substrate. Water adsorbs molecularly on FeO(111) and desorbs with a well resolved monolayer peak. IRAS measurements as a function of coverage are performed for water deposited at 30 and 135 K. For all coverages (0.2 ML and greater), the adsorbed water exhibits significant hydrogen bonding. Differences in IRAS spectra for water adsorbed at 30 and 135 K are subtle but suggest that water adsorbed at 135 K is well ordered. Monolayer nitrogen TPD spectra from water covered FeO(111) surfaces are used to investigate the clustering of the water as a function of deposition or annealing temperature. Temperature dependent water overlayer structures result from differences in water diffusion rates on bare FeO(111) and on water adsorbed on FeO(111). Features in the nitrogen TPD spectra allow the monolayer wetting and 2-dimensional (2D) ordering of water on FeO(111) to be followed. Voids in a partially disordered first water layer exist for water deposited below 120 K and ordered 2D islands are found when depositing water above 120 K.     

Spectroscopic Monitoring of the Acidity of Water Films on Ru(0001): Orientation‐Specific Acidity of Adsorbed Water

We examined the acid–base properties of water films adsorbed onto a Ru(0001) substrate by using surface spectroscopic methods in vacuum environments. Ammonia adsorption experiments combined with low‐energy sputtering (LES), reactive ion scattering (RIS), reflection–absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS) and temperature‐programmed desorption (TPD) measurements showed that the adsorbed water is acidic enough to transfer protons to ammonia. Only the water molecules in an intact water monolayer and water clusters larger than the hexamer exhibit such acidity, whereas small clusters, a thick ice film or a partially dissociated water monolayer that contains OH, H₂O and H species are not acidic. The observations indicate the orientation‐specific acidity of adsorbed water. The acidity stems from water molecules with H‐down adsorption geometry present in the monolayer. However, the dissociation of water into H and OH on the surface does not promote but rather suppresses the proton transfer to ammonia.     

Scanning tunneling microscopy of sulfur and benzenethiol chemisorbed on Ru(0001) in 0.1 M HClO4

In situ scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) combined with linear sweep voltammetry was used to examine spatial structures of sulfur adatoms (SA) and benzenethiol (BT) molecules adsorbed on an ordered Ru(0001) electrode in 0.1 M HClO4. The Ru(0001) surface, prepared by mechanical polishing and electrochemical reduction at -1.5 V (vs RHE) in 0.1 M HClO4, contained atomically flat terraces with an average width of 20 nm. Cyclic voltammograms obtained with an as-prepared Ru(0001) electrode in 0.1 M HClO4 showed characteristics nearly identical to those of Ru(0001) treated in high vacuum. High-quality STM images were obtained for SA and BT to determine their spatial structures as a function of potential. The structure of the SA adlayer changed from (2 x mean square root of 3)rect to domain walls to (mean square root of 7 x mean square root of 7)R19.1 degrees and then to disordered as the potential was scanned from 0.3 to 0.6 V. In contrast, molecules of BT were arranged in (2 x mean square root of 3)rect between 0.1 and 0.4 V, while they were disordered at all other potentials. Adsorption of BT molecules was predominantly through the sulfur headgroup. Sulfur adatoms and adsorbed BT molecules were stable against anodic polarization up to 1.0 V (vs RHE). These two species were adsorbed so strongly that their desorption did not occur even at the onset potential for the reduction of water in 0.1 M KOH.     

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.     

Ultrathin Rh films on Ru(0001): oxidation in confinement

Ultrathin rhodium films with a thickness ranging from 1 to a few monolayers were deposited on a single-crystal Ru(0001) surface in order to investigate the oxidation behavior of ultrathin epitaxial films on a dissimilar substrate. It is found that rhodium grows on Ru(0001) initially layer by layer, adapting the in-plane lattice parameters of Ru(0001). When exposing Rh films to oxygen environment (approximately 4.8 x 10(6) L O2 exposure) at 660 K, 2-4 ML Rh films form a surface oxide composed of (9 x 9) O-Rh-O trilayers. Quite in contrast, oxidation of the 1 ML RhRu(0001) film leads to a poorly ordered oxide with a rutile structure reminiscent of RuO2(110) on Ru(0001). The oxidized 1 ML RhRu(0001) film contains much more oxygen than the oxidized thicker Rh films. Lower temperatures (535 K) and high doses of oxygen lead to a (1 x 1)-O overlayer on the 1 ML RhRu(0001) surface, whose atomic geometry resembles closely that of the (1 x 1)-O phase on clean Ru(0001).     

The chemistry of trimethylamine on Ru(001) and O/Ru(001)

The interaction and reactivity of trimethylamine (TMA) has been studied over clean and oxygen-covered Ru(001) under UHV conditions, as a model for the chemistry of high-density hydrocarbons on a catalytic surface. The molecule adsorbs intact at surface temperature below 100 K with the nitrogen end directed toward the surface, as indicated from work function change measurements. At coverage less than 0.05 ML (relative to the Ru substrate atoms), TMA fully dissociates upon surface heating, with hydrogen as the only evolving molecule following temperature-programmed reaction/desorption (TPR/TPD). At higher coverage, the parent molecule desorbs, and its desorption peak shifts down from 270 K to 115 K upon completion of the first monolayer, indicating a strong repulsion among neighbor molecules. The dipole moment of an adsorbed TMA molecule has been estimated from work function study to be 1.4 D. Oxygen precoverage on the ruthenium surface has shown efficient reactivity with TMA. It shifts the surface chemistry toward the production of various oxygen-containing stable molecules such as H2CO, CO2, and CO that desorb between 200 and 600 K, respectively. TMA at a coverage of 0.5 ML practically cleans off the surface from its oxygen atoms as a result of TPR up to 1650 K, in contrast to CO oxidation on the O/Ru(001) surface. The overall reactivity of TMA on the oxidized ruthenium surface has been described as a multistep reaction mechanism.     

Co-adsorption of water and hydrogen on Ni(111)

We have studied the surface coverage dependence of the co-adsorption of D and D(2)O on the Ni(111) surface under UHV conditions. We use detailed temperature-programmed desorption studies and high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy to show how pre-covering the surface with various amounts of D affects adsorption and desorption of D(2)O. Our results show that the effects of co-adsorption are strongly dependent on D-coverage. In the deuterium pre-coverage range of 0-0.3 ML, adsorption of deuterium leaves a fraction of the available surface area bare for D(2)O adsorption, which shows no significant changes compared to adsorption on the bare surface. Our data indicate phase segregation of hydrogen and water into islands. At low post-coverages, D(2)O forms a two-phase system on the remaining bare surface that shows zero-order desorption kinetics. This two phase system likely consists of a 2-D solid phase of extended islands of hexamer rings and a 2-D water gas phase. Increasing the water post-dose leads at first to 'freezing' of the 2-D gas and is followed by formation of ordered, multilayered water islands in-between the deuterium islands. For deuterium pre-coverages between 0.3 and 0.5 ML, our data may be interpreted that the water hexamer ring structure, (D(2)O)(6), required for the formation of an ordered multilayer, does not form anymore. Instead, more disordered linear and branched chains of water molecules grow in-between the extended, hydrophobic deuterium islands. These deuterium islands have a D-atom density in agreement with a (2x2)-2D structure. The disordered water structures adsorbed in-between form nucleation sites for growth of 3-D water structures. Loss of regular lateral hydrogen bonding and weakened interaction with the substrate reduces the binding energy of water significantly in this regime and results in lowering of the desorption temperature. At deuterium pre-coverages greater than 0.5 ML, the saturated (2x2)-2D structure mixes with (1x1)-1D patches. The mixed structures are also hydrophobic. On such surfaces, submonolayer doses of water lead to formation of 3-D water structures well before wetting the entire hydrogen-covered surface.     

High density gradients in the (square root 3 x square root 3)R30 degrees-CO layer on Ru(0001)

The coverage regime just beyond 0.33 ML, representative of a perfectly ordered (square root 3 x square root 3)R30 degrees-CO layer on Ru(0001), has been investigated using infrared-absorption spectroscopy. Different isotopic mixtures of CO have been employed to derive a profound understanding of structural properties of such layers. It is found that extra CO molecules incorporated into the (square root 3 x square root 3)R30 degrees-CO layer affect their nearest neighbor molecules only, and the associated density gradient extends over no more than a few angstroms. Contrary to existing belief, the model system CO on Ru(0001) does not represent a case of an unusually shallow adsorption potential corrugation. Rather, CO experiences an exceptionally strong site preference when adsorbed on Ru(0001). Annealing causes the local distortion of the overlattice to propagate laterally, most probably in a density wave-like manner. Incipient motion on the atomic scale thereby has been detected by means of isotopic labeling of inequivalent molecules within the high density areas. All major conclusions are based on observations of (isotopically labeled) minority CO species which feature negligible dynamical lateral coupling. The majority CO species, on the other hand, provide laterally averaged, unspecific information on the status of the layer.     

From Adlayer Islands to Surface Alloy: Structural and Chemical Changes on Bimetallic PtRu/Ru(0001) Surfaces

The correlation between structural and chemical properties of bimetallic PtRu/Ru(0001) model catalysts and their modification upon stepwise annealing of a submonolayer Pt‐covered Ru(0001) surface up to the formation of an equilibrated Pt_xRu_1?x/Ru(0001) monolayer surface alloy was investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy and by the adsorption of CO and D₂ probe molecules. Both temperature‐programmed desorption and IR measurements demonstrate the influence of the surface structure on the adsorption properties of the bimetallic surface, which can be explained by changes of the composition of the adsorption ensembles (ensemble effects) for D adsorption and by changes in the electronic interaction (ligand effects, strain effects) of the metallic constituents for CO and D adsorption upon alloy formation.     

Water adsorption on the hydroxylated H-(1x1) O-ZnO(0001) surface

The adsorption of water multilayers on a well defined single crystal, hydroxyl-terminated ZnO-surface, H(1x1)-O-ZnO(0001) surface has been investigated using infrared (IR) spectroscopy, helium atom scattering (HAS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results reveal the formation of well ordered mono-, bi- and multilayers of D2O and H2O on this substrate. On the bare hydroxyl-covered H(1x1) surface the OH-stretch vibration could be clearly identified in the IR-spectra. The water adsorption and desorption kinetics on this hydroxylated surface were studied by monitoring the reflectivity of the surface for helium atoms. The analysis of the data yielded activation energies for desorption of H2O from the H(1x1) O-ZnO surface of 55.2 kJ mol-1. The results reveal the formation of ordered mono- and bilayers. Further exposure to water at 113 K results in the formation of amorphous 3-D islands.     

Synergistic interactions in three-center metal---metal bonding. Cu---Zn on Ru(0001)

Cu and Zn alloy when co-adsorbed on top of Ru(0001). The properties of these alloy films have been examined using thermal desorption mass spectroscopy, core-level photoemission, and CO chemisorption. For submonolayer coverages of Cu and Zn, the interaction among the Ru---Zn, Ru---Cu and Zn---Cu bonds produces a system that has electronic and chemical properties significantly different from those of Cu/Ru(0001), Zn/Ru(0001) and thick copper zinc alloys. Two-dimensional copper zinc alloys supported on Ru(0001) show Zn---Ru and Zn---Cu bonds more stable than the corresponding bonds in Zn/Ru(0001) or thick CuZn alloys. We propose that this phenomenon is caused by synergistic interactions in three-center metal---metal bonding.     

Adsorption of bisulfate on the Ru(0001) single crystal electrode surface

Adsorption of anions from sulfuric acid solutions has been studied on Ru(0001) single crystal and polycrystalline surfaces by electrochemical techniques and in-situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Infrared spectroscopy shows that bisulfate is the anion adsorbed on the Ru(0001) surface. The bisulfate adsorption is detected at the H₂ evolution potential and extends into the potential region where the Ru surface is oxidized. A method for extracting unipolar bands from bipolar bands has been presented. The tuning rate of adsorbed bisulfate in the double layer potential region of Ru(0001) was found to be significantly smaller than those observed for other platinum metals. This has been ascribed to a small change in bisulfate coverage on Ru(0001) in this potential range. Bisulfate vibration frequencies are higher on this surface than at any face-centered cubic metal with the (111) orientation. Oxidation of the Ru(0001) surface is limited to one electron per Ru atom, distinctly different from the high degree of oxidation seen in polycrystalline surfaces. For oxidized polycrystalline Ru, only solution phase sulfates and bisulfates are observed in the IR spectra.     

The first layer of water on Rh(111): microscopic structure and desorption kinetics

The adsorption states and growth process of the first water (D2O) layer on Rh(111) were investigated using infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy, temperature programed desorption, and spot-profile-analysis low energy electron diffraction. Water molecules wet the Rh(111) surface intact. At the early stage of first layer growth, a (square root 3 x square root 3)R30 degrees commensurate water layer grows where "up" and "down" species coexist; the up and down species represent water molecules which have free OD, pointing to a vacuum and the substrate, respectively. The up domain was a flatter structure than an icelike bilayer. Water desorption from Rh(111) was a half-order process. The activation energy and the preexponential factor of desorption are estimated to be 60 kJ/mol and 4.8 x 10(16) ML(1/2)/s at submonolayer coverage, respectively. With an increase in water coverage, the flat up domain becomes a zigzag layer, like an ice bilayer. At the saturation coverage, the amount of down species is 1.3 times larger than that of the up species. In addition, the activation energy and the preexponential factor of desorption decrease to 51 kJ/mol and 1.3 x 10(14) ML(1/2)/s, respectively.     

Evidence of stable high-temperature D(x)-CO intermediates on the Ru(0001) surface

We demonstrate the formation of complexes involving attractive interactions between D and CO on Ru(0001) that are stable at significantly higher temperatures than have previously been reported for such intermediate species on this surface. These complexes are evident by the appearance of new desorption features upon heating of the sample. They decompose in stages as the sample temperature is increased, with the most stable component desorbing at >500 K. The D:CO ratio remaining on the surface during the final stages of desorption tends towards 1:1. The new features are populated during normally incident molecular beam dosing of D(2) on to CO pre-covered Ru(0001) surfaces (180 K) when the CO coverage exceeds 50% of the saturation value. The amount of complex formed decreases somewhat with increasing CO pre-coverage. It is almost absent in the case of dosing on to the fully saturated surface. The results are interpreted in terms of both local and long-range rearrangements of the overlayer that give rise to the observed CO coverage dependence and limit the amount of complex that can be formed.     

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.     

Identification of subsurface oxygen species created during oxidation of Ru(0001)

The oxidation states formed during low-temperature oxidation (T < 500 K) of a Ru(0001) surface are identified with photoelectron spectromicroscopy and thermal desorption (TD) spectroscopy. Adsorption and consecutive incorporation of oxygen are studied following the distinct chemical shifts of the Ru 3d(5/2) core levels of the two topmost Ru layers. The evolution of the Ru 3d(5/2) spectra with oxygen exposure at 475 K and the corresponding O2 desorption spectra reveal that about 2 ML of oxygen incorporate into the subsurface region, residing between the first and second Ru layer. Our results suggest that the subsurface oxygen binds to the first and second layer Ru atoms, yielding a metastable surface "oxide", which represents the oxidation state of an atomically well ordered Ru(0001) surface under low-temperature oxidation conditions. Accumulation of more than 3 ML of oxygen is possible via defect-promoted penetration below the second layer when the initial Ru(0001) surface is disordered. Despite its higher capacity for oxygen accumulation, also the disordered Ru surface does not show features characteristic for the crystalline RuO2 islands. Development of lateral heterogeneity in the oxygen concentration is evidenced by the Ru 3d(5/2) images and microspot spectra after the onset of oxygen incorporation, which becomes very pronounced when the oxidation is carried out at T > 550 K. This is attributed to facilitated O incorporation and oxide nucleation in microregions with a high density of defects.     

Modification of Surface Reactivity by CO: Effects on Decomposition and Polymerization of Acetaldehyde on Ru(0001)

The adsorption and reaction of acetaldehyde on the clean and CO pre-covered Ru(0001) surfaces have been investigated using temperature programmed desorption method. On the clean Ru(0001) surface, the decomposition of acetaldehyde is the main reaction channel, with little polymerization occurring. However, on the CO pre-covered Ru(0001) surface, the decomposition of acetaldehyde is inhibited considerably with increasing CO coverage. Whereas, the polymerization occurs efficiently, especially at high CO coverage (θ_CO>0.5 ML), which is strongly CO coverage dependent. Combined with previous studies, the well-ordered hexagonal structure of CO layer formed on the Ru(0001) surface at high CO coverage that matches the configuration of paraldehyde is likely to be the origin of this remarkable phenomenon.     

Site-dependent electron-stimulated reactions in water films on TiO2(110)

Electron-stimulated reactions in thin [<3 ML (monolayer)] water films adsorbed on TiO(2)(110) are investigated. Irradiation with 100 eV electrons results in electron-stimulated dissociation and electron-stimulated desorption (ESD) of adsorbed water molecules. The molecular water ESD yield increases linearly with water coverage theta for 0< or =theta< or =1 ML and 11 ML, the water ESD yield per additional water molecule adsorbed (i.e., the slope of the ESD yield versus coverage) is 3.5 times larger than for theta<1 ML. In contrast, the number of water molecules dissociated per incident electron increases linearly for theta< or =2 ML without changing slope at theta=1 ML. The total electron-stimulated sputtering rate, as measured by postirradiation temperature programmed desorption of the remaining water, is larger for theta>1 ML due to the increased water ESD for those coverages. The water ESD yields versus electron energy (for 5-50 eV) are qualitatively similar for 1, 2, and 40 ML water films. In each case, the observed ESD threshold is at approximately 10 eV and the yield increases monotonically with increasing electron energy. The results indicate that excitations in the adsorbed water layer are primarily responsible for the ESD in thin water films on TiO(2)(110). Experiments on "isotopically layered" films with D(2)O adsorbed on the Ti(4+) sites (D(2)O(Ti)) and H(2)O adsorbed on the bridging oxygen atoms (H(2)O(BBO)) demonstrate that increasing the water coverage above 1 ML rapidly suppresses the electron-stimulated desorption of D(2)O(Ti) and D atoms, despite the fact that the total water ESD and atomic hydrogen ESD yields increase with increasing coverage. The coverage dependence of the electron-stimulated reactions is probably related to the different bonding geometries for H(2)O(Ti) and H(2)O(BBO) and its influence on the desorption probability of the reaction products.