Molecular damage in bi-isonicotinic acid adsorbed on rutile TiO2(1 1 0)

Here we present the characteristic signatures in X-ray absorption and photoemission spectroscopy for molecular damage in adsorbed monolayers of bi-isonicotinic acid on a rutile TiO₂(1 1 0) surface. Bi-isonicotinic acid is the anchor ligand through which many important inorganic complexes are bound to the surface of TiO₂ in dye-sensitized solar cells. The nature of the damage caused by excessive heating of the adsorbed monolayer is consistent with splitting the molecule into two adsorbed isonicotinic acid molecular fragments. The effect on the lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals (involved in electron transfer in the molecule) can be understood in terms of the adsorption geometry of the reaction products and their nearest neighbor interactions.