Influence of Subsurface Layers on the Adsorption of Large Organic Molecules on Close-Packed Metal Surfaces

Robin Ohmann; Giacomo Levita; Lucia Vitali; Alessandro De Vita; Klaus Kern

doi:10.1021/nn103058e

journal article·2011-02-22Open access

Influence of Subsurface Layers on the Adsorption of Large Organic Molecules on Close-Packed Metal Surfaces

Robin Ohmann, Giacomo Levita, Lucia Vitali, Alessandro De Vita, Klaus Kern

ACS Nano· Volume 5· Issue 2

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Abstract

The asymmetric molecule 4-[trans-2-(pyrid-4-yl-vinyl)] benzoic acid (PVBA) adsorbed on Cu(111) is characterized by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and density functional theory (DFT) to determine the influence of subsurface atomic layers on the adsorption. In contrast to the 6-fold symmetry of the first atomic layer of close-packed surfaces, we find that the arrangement of the isolated molecules follows predominantly a 3-fold symmetry. This reduction in symmetry, where the molecule selects a specific orientation along the ⟨-211⟩ axes, reveals the contribution of lower-lying Cu layers to the molecular arrangement. Our calculations rationalize the interaction of the substrate with the molecule in terms of electrostatic screening and local relaxation phenomena.

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Research context

OpenAlex topics: Surface Chemistry and Catalysis · Molecular Junctions and Nanostructures · Surface and Thin Film Phenomena

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Max-Planck-Institute for Solid State Research, Stuttgart, Germany

INFM-DEMOCRITOS National Simulation Center and Center of Excellence for Nanostructured Materials (CENMAT), Trieste, Italy

Centro de Física de Materiales CFM-MPC, Centro Mixto CSIC-UPV/EHU, E-20018, San Sebastián, Spain

IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, E-48011, Bilbao, Spain

Physics Department, King’s College, London Strand, London WC2R2LS, U.K.

Institut de Physique de la Matière Condensée, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland

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