Templating a face-centered cubic (110) termination of C60

Scanning tunneling microscopy has been used to study C₆₀ overlayers on TiO₂(100)-(1 × 3). Initial adsorption preferentially occurs on O vacancies (Ti³⁺), evidencing a site-specific interaction dominated by substrate-adsorbate charge transfer. At saturation coverage the molecules are incommensurate with Ti³⁺ sites along 001], suggesting a delicate balance between intermolecular and substrate interactions. The unit cell of the C₆₀ overlayer is 13.8Å× 10.0 ± 0.5Å, consistent with the first layer of fcc C₆₀(110); molecules also adopt sites in the troughs of the (1 × 3) structure to form the second layer.