STM fingerprint of molecule-adatom interactions in a self-assembled metal-organic surface coordination network on Cu(111)
Journal article, 2010
A novel approach of identifying metal atoms within a metal-organic surface coordination network using scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) is presented. The Cu adatoms coordinated in the porous surface network of 1,3,8,10-tetraazaperopyrene (TAPP) molecules on a Cu(111) surface give rise to a characteristic electronic resonance in STM experiments. Using density functional theory calculations, we provide strong evidence that this resonance is a fingerprint of the interaction between the molecules and the Cu adatoms. We also show that the bonding of the Cu adatoms to the organic exodentate ligands is characterised by both the mixing of the nitrogen lone-pair orbitals of TAPP with states on the Cu adatoms and the partial filling of the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) of the TAPP molecule. Furthermore, the key interactions determining the surface unit cell of the network are discussed.
nanostructures
transistors
organization
aggregation
dependence
reactivity
chemistry
scanning tunneling microscope
electronics
science
Author
J. Bjork
University of Liverpool
M. Matena
Universitat Basel
Donostia International Physics Center
M. S. Dyer
University of Liverpool
M. Enache
Universitat Basel
University of Groningen
J. Lobo-Checa
Universitat Basel
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
L. H. Gade
Universitat Heidelberg
T. A. Jung
Paul Scherrer Institut
M. Stohr
University of Groningen
Universitat Basel
Mats Persson
Chalmers, Applied Physics, Materials and Surface Theory
Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics
1463-9076 (ISSN) 1463-9084 (eISSN)
Vol. 12 31 8815-8821Subject Categories (SSIF 2011)
Chemical Sciences
DOI
10.1039/c003660a