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Open Access
Abstract: The adsorption configurations of a technologically relevant model organic adsorbate on the silicon (001) surface were studied using energy scanned X-ray photoelectron diffraction (PhD). Previous work has established the existence of an interesting vertically-aligned ("flagpole") configuration, where the acetophenone attaches to Si(001) via the acetyl group carbon and oxygen atoms. DFT calculations have predicted two energetically similar variants of this structure, where the phenyl ring is orientated parallel or perpendicular to the rows of silicon dimers on this reconstructed surface. However, previously published experimental measurements, including scanning tunnelling microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure investigations were unable to distinguish between these two configurations. Here, we apply the unique experimental capabilities of the PhD technique to this system and demonstrate that the dominant adsorption configuration has the phenyl ring parallel to the dimer rows (the end-bridge structure). This information in turn facilitates the determination of the dominant reaction pathway for acetophenone on Si(001), which has remained elusive until now. Information about subtle preferences in reaction pathways that affect the alignment and orientation of organic adsorbates such as acetophenone on technologically-relevant semiconductor surfaces such as Si(001) is critical for the fabrication of future atomically-precise atomic and molecular-scale electronic devices utilising the organic-silicon interface, and this work demonstrates the unique and complementary capabilities of PhD for providing this information.
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Feb 2021
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I09-Surface and Interface Structural Analysis
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Peter
Knecht
,
Paul T. P.
Ryan
,
David A.
Duncan
,
Li
Jiang
,
Joachim
Reichert
,
Peter S.
Deimel
,
Felix
Haag
,
Johannes T.
Kuchle
,
Francesco
Allegretti
,
Tien-lin
Lee
,
Martin
Schwarz
,
Manuela
Garnica
,
Willi
Auwärter
,
Ari Paavo
Seitsonen
,
Johannes V.
Barth
,
Anthoula C.
Papageorgiou
Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[24320, 17634]
Abstract: The adsorption and monolayer self-assembly of functional metal–organic blocks on solid surfaces are critical for the physicochemical properties of these low-dimensional materials. Although modern microscopy tools are very sensitive to the lateral arrangement of such blocks, they are still unable to offer directly the complete structural analysis especially for nonplanar molecules containing different atoms. Here, we apply a combinatorial approach for the characterization of such interfaces, which enables unexpected insights. An archetypal metalloporphyrin on a catalytically active surface as a function of its molecular coverage and substituent arrangement is characterized by low-energy electron diffraction, scanning probe microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, normal-incidence X-ray standing waves, and density functional theory. We look into Ru tetraphenyl porphyrin (Ru-TPP) on Ag(111), which is also converted into its planarized derivates via surface-assisted cyclodehydrogenation reactions. Depending on the arrangement of the phenyl substituents, the Ru atoms have distinct electronic structures and the porphyrin macrocycles adapt differently to the surface: saddle shape (pristine Ru-TPP) or bowl shape (planarized Ru-TPP derivates). In all cases, the Ru atom resides close to the surface (2.59/2.45 Å), preferably located at hollow sites and in the interface between the plane of the porphyrin macrocycle and the Ag surface. For the more flexible pristine Ru-TPP, we identify an additional self-assembled structure, allowing the molecular density of the self-assembled monolayer to be tuned within ∼20%. This precise analysis is central to harnessing the potential of metalloporphyrin/metal interfaces in functional systems.
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Jan 2021
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Zishu
Wang
,
Kai
Qian
,
Murat Anil
Öner
,
Peter S.
Deimel
,
Yan
Wang
,
Shuai
Zhang
,
Xiaoxi
Zhang
,
Vishal
Gupta
,
Juan
Li
,
Hong-jun
Gao
,
David A.
Duncan
,
Johannes V.
Barth
,
Xiao
Lin
,
Francesco
Allegretti
,
Shixuan
Du
,
Carlos-andres
Palma
Abstract: Precisely layered molecular heterostructures are promising but still largely unexplored materials, with the potential to complement and enhance the scope of two-dimensional heterostructures. The controlled epitaxial growth of vertically stacked molecular layers connected through tailored linkers, can lead to significant development in the field. Here, we demonstrate that sequential assembly of prototypical iron porphyrins and axial ligands can be steered via temperature-programmed desorption, and monitored by mass spectrometry and by high-resolution atomic force microscopy under ultrahigh vacuum conditions. Complementary photoelectron spectroscopy analysis delivers chemical insight into the formation of layer-by-layer nanoarchitectures. Our temperature-directed methodology outlines a promising strategy for the in vacuo fabrication of precisely stacked, multicomponent (metal–organic) molecular heterostructures.
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Nov 2020
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Open Access
Abstract: The normal incidence x-ray standing wave (NIXSW) technique is the primary source of quantitative experimental information on the adsorption height of many near-planar molecules on metal surfaces, of relevance to organic electronics. The technique yields two structural parameters, the coherent position and the coherent fraction. For high values of the coherent fraction the coherent position can be related directly to the adsorption height, but because the coherent fraction is effectively an order parameter, low values of this parameter are often attributed to partial disorder. It is certainly true that in depositing these large molecules on a surface it is very challenging to produce a perfectly ordered surface. However, is the type of disorder that is likely to occur able to account for no other effect on measured NIXSW data than a lowering of the coherent fraction? Here we show, by considering a wide range of possible types of 'disorder', that in almost all such situations it is improbable that the coherent positions associated with very low coherent fractions actually provide a reliable measure of the adsorption height of the ordered component, as is often assumed to be the case. As such, presentations of NIXSW data that only consider coherent position values are likely to be extremely misleading, and provide an unreliable benchmark for detailed understanding of these interfaces.
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Nov 2020
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I09-Surface and Interface Structural Analysis
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[18752]
Open Access
Abstract: The on-surface synthesis of covalently bonded materials differs from solution-phase synthesis in several respects. The transition from a three-dimensional reaction volume to quasi-two-dimensional confinement, as is the case for on-surface synthesis, has the potential to facilitate alternative reaction pathways to those available in solution. Ullmann-type reactions, where the surface plays a role in the coupling of aryl-halide functionalised species, has been shown to facilitate extended one- and two-dimensional structures. Here we employ a combination of scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray standing wave (XSW) analysis to perform a chemical and structural characterisation of the Ullmann-type coupling of two iodine functionalised species on a Ag(111) surface held under ultra-high vacuum (UHV) conditions. Our results allow characterisation of molecular conformations and adsorption geometries within an on-surface reaction and provide insight into the incorporation of metal adatoms within the intermediate structures of the reaction.
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Nov 2020
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I09-Surface and Interface Structural Analysis
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[15899, 18191]
Abstract: The structure of coadsorption phases formed on Ag(111) by TCNQ (7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethane) with Cs are compared with previously reported coadsorption phases formed with K, following investigation by scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM), low energy electron diffraction, soft X-ray photoelectrons spectroscopy and normal incidence X-ray standing waves (NIXSW). For each alkali we identify two ordered phases, one with an alkali: TCNQ stoichiometry of 1:1 and the other 2:1. STM images show the molecular organisation is the same for Cs and K, although only the K2TCNQ phase is commensurate with the substrate. A previously-published detailed structure determination of the K2TCNQ phase, complemented by density function theory calculations that identify bonding strengths, showed that the binding within the layer is much stronger than that of the layer to the substrate. Insensitivity to commensuration is thus to be expected. The situation for KTCNQ and CsTCNQ is less clear; these ordered incommensurate overlayers clearly have strong intralayer bonding, but the relative strength of the average overlayer-substrate bonding is unknown. NIXSW data show that the alkalis in these phases occupy adsorption sites far more distant from the substrate than the TCNQ molecules when compared to the near coplanar alkali-TCNQ geometry of K2TCNQ and Cs2TCNQ. Ultraviolet photoelectron spectra show increasing bonding shifts of TCNQ orbital states with alkali coverage.
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Nov 2020
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I09-Surface and Interface Structural Analysis
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[16243]
Open Access
Abstract: Interesting electronic properties arise in vertically stacked graphene sheets, some of which can be controlled by mutual orientation of the adjacent layers. In this study, we investigate the MBE grown multilayer graphene on Ir(111) by means of STM, LEED and XPS and we examine the influence of the substrate on the geometric and electronic properties of bilayer graphene by employing XSW and ARPES measurements. We find that the MBE method does not limit the growth to two graphene layers and that the wrinkles, which arise through extended carbon deposition, play a crucial role in the multilayer growth. We also find that the bilayer and trilayer graphene sheets have graphitic-like properties in terms of the separation between the two layers and their stacking. The presence of the iridium substrate imposes a periodic potential induced by the moiré pattern that was found to lead to the formation of replica bands and minigaps in bilayer graphene. From tight-binding fits to our ARPES data we find that band renormalization takes place in multilayer graphene due to a weaker coupling of the upper-most graphene layer to the iridium substrate.
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Sep 2020
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Abstract: By exploiting an established on-surface metallation strategy, we address the ability of the corrolic macrocycle to stabilise transition metal ions in high-valent (III) oxidation states in metal-supported molecular layers. This approach offers a route to engineer adsorbed metal complexes that cannot be easily fabricated by organic synthesis methods and bear a vacant axial coordination site for catalytic conversions.
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Aug 2020
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I09-Surface and Interface Structural Analysis
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Phil J.
Blowey
,
Billal
Sohail
,
Luke A.
Rochford
,
Timothy
Lafosse
,
David A.
Duncan
,
Paul
Ryan
,
Daniel Andrew
Warr
,
Tien-lin
Lee
,
Giovanni
Costantini
,
Reinhard J.
Maurer
,
David Phillip
Woodruff
Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[15899, 18191]
Abstract: Efficient charge transfer across metal–organic interfaces is a key physical process in modern organic electronics devices, and characterization of the energy level alignment at the interface is crucial to enable a rational device design. We show that the insertion of alkali atoms can significantly change the structure and electronic properties of a metal–organic interface. Coadsorption of tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ) and potassium on a Ag(111) surface leads to the formation of a two-dimensional charge transfer salt, with properties quite different from those of the two-dimensional Ag adatom TCNQ metal–organic framework formed in the absence of K doping. We establish a highly accurate structural model by combination of quantitative X-ray standing wave measurements, scanning tunnelling microscopy, and density-functional theory (DFT) calculations. Full agreement between the experimental data and the computational prediction of the structure is only achieved by inclusion of a charge-transfer-scaled dispersion correction in the DFT, which correctly accounts for the effects of strong charge transfer on the atomic polarizability of potassium. The commensurate surface layer formed by TCNQ and K is dominated by strong charge transfer and ionic bonding and is accompanied by a structural and electronic decoupling from the underlying metal substrate. The consequence is a significant change in energy level alignment and work function compared to TCNQ on Ag(111). Possible implications of charge-transfer salt formation at metal–organic interfaces for organic thin-film devices are discussed.
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May 2020
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Yi-ling
Chen
,
Tomas
Gomes
,
Clare S.
Hardman
,
Felipe A.
Vieira Braga
,
Danuta
Gutowska-owsiak
,
Maryam
Salimi
,
Nicki
Gray
,
David A.
Duncan
,
Gary
Reynolds
,
David
Johnson
,
Mariolina
Salio
,
Vincenzo
Cerundolo
,
Jillian L.
Barlow
,
Andrew N. J.
Mckenzie
,
Sarah A.
Teichmann
,
Muzlifah
Haniffa
,
Graham
Ogg
Abstract: Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) produce type I interferon (IFN-I) and are traditionally defined as being BDCA-2+CD123+. pDCs are not readily detectable in healthy human skin, but have been suggested to accumulate in wounds. Here, we describe a CD1a-bearing BDCA-2+CD123int DC subset that rapidly infiltrates human skin wounds and comprises a major DC population. Using single-cell RNA sequencing, we show that these cells are largely activated DCs acquiring features compatible with lymph node homing and antigen presentation, but unexpectedly express both BDCA-2 and CD123, potentially mimicking pDCs. Furthermore, a third BDCA-2–expressing population, Axl+Siglec-6+ DCs (ASDC), was also found to infiltrate human skin during wounding. These data demonstrate early skin infiltration of a previously unrecognized CD123intBDCA-2+CD1a+ DC subset during acute sterile inflammation, and prompt a re-evaluation of previously ascribed pDC involvement in skin disease.
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Mar 2020
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