Penning ionization electron spectroscopy of molecular adsorbates on Pd and Cu surfaces

The electronic properties of CO, PF₃, NH₃, C₂H₂ and C₆H₆ adsorbed on Pd(111), Pd(110), and Cu(110) surfaces were studied by Auger deexcitation (AD) of metastable noble gas atoms (Penning ionization) and by ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS). Electron emission via AD is restricted to the outmost levels localized at the adsorbed particles. The AD process competes with reasonance ionization of the metastable atoms, and its probability depends on the geometry of the adsorbed species and on its adsorption sites as well as on coverage. The differences in kinetic energy of electrons emitted by AD or by photons reflect modifications of the electron affinities of the adsorbed molecules. The extreme surface sensitivity of AD spectroscopy allows in particular to probe the local density of states at the adsorbate in the energy range close to the Fermi level which arises from π “back donation” as well as σ antibonding contributions.