Organic molecules experience appealing applications in the industry of electronic devices. The key to developing the functionality of these applications lies in the thorough understanding of the electronic structure of the employed molecules and their interactions with the unavoidable surfaces. In the first part of this thesis, state-of-the-art density functional theory (DFT) calculations in close collaboration with experiment have been presented to exemplary address the on-surface structure formation in the prototypical (i) perylene-based diindenoperylene molecule (DIP) on a reactive surface and in (ii) a functional molecule with a nonuniform internal charge distribution, namely the perylene-3,4,9,10-tetracarboxylic diahydride(PTCDA), on ionic surfaces. For both systems, the adsorption mechanisms have been rationalised and compared. The second part of this thesis presents a DFT-guided multi-technique investigation on the interfacial chemistry of a macrocyclic low-symmetry molecule, namely the free-base5,10,15-tris(pentafluorophenyl)corroles (H3TpFPC), adsorbed on Ag(111). Combining structural modelling with high-level calculations of relevant X-ray core-levels and absorption edges, a detailed insight into the complex on-surface chemistry of corroles has been achieved. Beside corroborating the on-surface reactions and providing valuable information on the geometries of corrolic species, it is demonstrated that theory-assisted near edge X-ray absorption fine-structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy enables the site-sensitive monitoring of on-surface chemical reactions, thus, providing information not accessible by other techniques. ; eng

An updated fourth edition of the text that provides an understanding of chemical transformations and the formation of structures at surfaces The revised and enhanced fourth edition of Surface Science covers all the essential techniques and phenomena that are relevant to the field. The text elucidates the structural, dynamical, thermodynamic and kinetic principles concentrating on gas/solid and liquid/solid interfaces. These principles allow for an understanding of how and why chemical transformations occur at surfaces. The author (a noted expert on in the field) combines the required chemistry, physics and mathematics to create a text that is accessible and comprehensive. The fourth edition incorporates new end-of-chapter exercises, the solutions to which are available on-line to demonstrate how problem solving that is relevant to surface science should be performed. Each chapter begins with simple principles and builds to more advanced ones. The advanced topics provide material beyond the introductory level and highlight some frontier areas of study. This updated new edition: Contains an expanded treatment of STM and AFM as well as super-resolution microscopy Reviews advances in the theoretical basis of catalysis and the use of activity descriptors for rational catalyst design Extends the discussion of two-dimensional solids to reflect remarkable advances in their growth and characterization Delves deeper into the surface science of electrochemistry and charge transfer reactions Updates the “Frontiers and Challenges” sections at the end of each chapter as well as the list of references Written for students, researchers and professionals, the fourth edition of Surface Science offers a revitalized text that contains the tools and a set of principles for understanding the field. Instructor support material, solutions and PPTs of figures, are available at http://booksupport.wiley.com

Quantum chemical calculations have been used to model chemical reactions in epitaxial growth of silicon carbide by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) processes and to study heterogeneous catalytic reactions for methanol synthesis. CVD is a common method to produce high-quality materials and e.g. thin films in the semiconductor industry, and one of the many usages of methanol is as a promising future renewable and sustainable energy carrier. To optimize the chemical processes it is essential to understand the reaction mechanisms. A comprehensive theoretical model for the process is therefore desired in order to be able to explore various variables that are difficult to investigate in situ. In this thesis reaction paths and reaction energies are computed using quantum chemical calculations. The quantum-chemical results can subsequently be used as input for thermodynamic, kinetic and computational fluid dynamics modelling in order to obtain data directly comparable with the experimental observations. For the CVD process, the effect of halogen addition to the gas mixture is studied by modelling the adsorption and diffusion of SiH2, SiCl2 and SiBr2 on the (0001?) 4H-SiC surface. SiH2 was found to bind strongest to the surface and SiBr2 binds slightly stronger than the SiCl2 molecule. The diffusion barrier is shown to be lower for SiH2 than for SiBr2 and SiCl2 which have similar barriers. SiBr2 and SiCl2 are found to have similar physisorption energies and bind stronger than the SiH2 molecule. Gibbs free-energy calculations also indicate that the SiC surface is not fully hydrogen terminated at CVD conditions since missing-neighboring pair of surface hydrogens is found to be common. Calculations for the (0001) surface show that SiCl, SiCl2, SiHCl, SiH, and SiH2 likely adsorb on a methylene site, but the processes are thermodynamically less favorable than their reverse reactions. However, the adsorbed products may be stabilized by subsequent surface reactions to form a larger structure. The formation of these larger structures is found to be fast enough to compete with the desorption processes. Also the Gibbs free energies for adsorption of Si atoms, SiX, SiX2, and SiHX where X is F or Br are presented. Adsorption of Si atoms is shown to be the most thermodynamically favorable reaction followed by SiX, SiHX, and SiX2, X being a halide. The results in this study suggest that the major Si contributors in the SiC–CVD process are Si atoms, SiX and SiH. Methanol can be synthesized from gaseous carbon dioxide and hydrogen using solid metal-metal oxide mixtures acting as heterogeneous catalysts. Since a large surface area of the catalyst enhances the speed of the heterogeneous reaction, the use of nanoparticles (NP) is expected to be advantageous due to the NPs’ large area to surface ratio. The plasma-induced creation of copper NPs is investigated. One important element during particle growth is the charging process where the variation of the work function (W) with particle size is a key quantity, and the variation becomes increasingly pronounced at smaller NP sizes. The work functions are computed for a set of NP charge numbers, sizes and shapes, using copper as a case study. A derived analytical expression for W is shown to give quite accurate estimates provided that the diameter of the NP is larger than about a nanometer and that the NP has relaxed to close to a spherical shape. For smaller sizes W deviates from the approximative expression, and also depends on the charge number. Some consequences of these results for NP charging process are outlined. Key reaction steps in the methanol synthesis reaction mechanism using a Cu/ZrO2 nanoparticle catalyst is investigated. Two different reaction paths for conversion of CO2 to CO is studied. The two paths result in the same complete reaction 2 CO2 ? 2 CO + O2 where ZrO2 (s) acts as a catalyst. The highest activation energies are significantly lower compared to that of the gas phase reaction. The presence of oxygen vacancies at the surface appear to be decisive for the catalytic process to be effective. Studies of the reaction kinetics show that when oxygen vacancies are present on the ZrO2 surface, carbon monoxide is produced within a microsecond. The IR spectra of CO2 and H2 interacting with ZrO2 and Cu under conditions that correspond to the catalyzed CH3OH production process is also studied experimentally and compared to results from the theoretical computations. Surface structures and gas-phase molecules are identified through the spectral lines by matching them to specific vibrational modes from the literature and from the new computational results. Several surface structures are verified and can be used to pin point surface structures in the reaction path. This gives important information that help decipher how the reaction mechanism of the CO2 conversion and ultimately may aid to improve the methanol synthesis process.

Chemistry and chemical engineering have changed significantly in the last decade. They have broadened their scopeâ€"into biology, nanotechnology, materials science, computation, and advanced methods of process systems engineering and controlâ€"so much that the programs in most chemistry and chemical engineering departments now barely resemble the classical notion of chemistry. Beyond the Molecular Frontier brings together research, discovery, and invention across the entire spectrum of the chemical sciencesâ€"from fundamental, molecular-level chemistry to large-scale chemical processing technology. This reflects the way the field has evolved, the synergy at universities between research and education in chemistry and chemical engineering, and the way chemists and chemical engineers work together in industry. The astonishing developments in science and engineering during the 20th century have made it possible to dream of new goals that might previously have been considered unthinkable. This book identifies the key opportunities and challenges for the chemical sciences, from basic research to societal needs and from terrorism defense to environmental protection, and it looks at the ways in which chemists and chemical engineers can work together to contribute to an improved future.

Modern technologies increasingly rely on low-dimensional physics at interfaces and in thin-films and nano-structures. Surface science holds a key position in providing the experimental methods and theoretical models for a basic understanding of these effects. This book includes case studies and status reports about research topics such as: surface structure determination by tensor-LEED and surface X-ray diffraction; the preparation and detection of low-dimensional electronic surface states; quantitative surface compositional analysis; the dynamics of adsorption and reaction of adsorbates, e.g. kinetic oscillations; the characterization and control of thin-film and multilayer growth including the influence of surfactants; a critical assessment of the surface physics approach to heterogeneous catalysis.

Molecular surface science has made enormous progress in the past 30 years. The development can be characterized by a revolution in fundamental knowledge obtained from simple model systems and by an explosion in the number of experimental techniques. The last 10 years has seen an equally rapid development of quantum mechanical modeling of surface processes using Density Functional Theory (DFT). Chemical Bonding at Surfaces and Interfaces focuses on phenomena and concepts rather than on experimental or theoretical techniques. The aim is to provide the common basis for describing the interaction of atoms and molecules with surfaces and this to be used very broadly in science and technology. The book begins with an overview of structural information on surface adsorbates and discusses the structure of a number of important chemisorption systems. Chapter 2 describes in detail the chemical bond between atoms or molecules and a metal surface in the observed surface structures. A detailed description of experimental information on the dynamics of bond-formation and bond-breaking at surfaces make up Chapter 3. Followed by an in-depth analysis of aspects of heterogeneous catalysis based on the d-band model. In Chapter 5 adsorption and chemistry on the enormously important Si and Ge semiconductor surfaces are covered. In the remaining two Chapters the book moves on from solid-gas interfaces and looks at solid-liquid interface processes. In the final chapter an overview is given of the environmentally important chemical processes occurring on mineral and oxide surfaces in contact with water and electrolytes. - Gives examples of how modern theoretical DFT techniques can be used to design heterogeneous catalysts - This book suits the rapid introduction of methods and concepts from surface science into a broad range of scientific disciplines where the interaction between a solid and the surrounding gas or liquid phase is an essential component - Shows how insight into chemical bonding at surfaces can be applied to a range of scientific problems in heterogeneous catalysis, electrochemistry, environmental science and semiconductor processing - Provides both the fundamental perspective and an overview of chemical bonding in terms of structure, electronic structure and dynamics of bond rearrangements at surfaces

Surface science emerged in the 1960s with the development of reliable ultrahigh vacuum apparatus, providing exact structures of surfaces of metal single crystals, information about their compositions, and relationships between surface structure and composition and catalytic reaction rates. Catalysis, the acceleration of a chemical reaction by a catalyst (substance), provided much of the driving force for the early development of surface science. As surface science continues its rapid development, this book illustrates how it is still driven by the challenges of catalysis and how both theory and scanning tunneling microscopy have forcefully emerged as essential tools. It is also evident how surface science continues to serve as the foundation of catalytic science. This is a compendium written by leading surface scientists presenting an incisive assessment of up-to-date theoretical and experimental results constituting the foundation of fundamental understanding of surface catalysis. This paperback.