Translational energy release in the recombinative desorption of H2 from Ag(111)

We have investigated the recombinative desorption of H₂ from Ag(111) using (2 + 1) REMPI to detect the desorbing molecules. We describe a method for determining the energy released into translational motion normal to the surface over a wide range of surface temperatures. This was achieved by using a weak electric field to disperse the ions, in contrast to the usual field-free method. Calibration and analysis methods are discussed and energy distributions P(E) are reported for H₂ (v=0). Desorption from a 295 K surface shows only a single low-energy peak ( ), whereas the translational energy release is bimodal for desorption from a 580 K surface, with mean desorption energies of approximately 140 meV and 1 eV for the two pathways. Sticking functions are calculated using detailed balance, revealing a large dependence on surface temperature.