I present work from two studies illustrating the impact of condensed-phase film morphology on reaction kinetics and surface adsorption. To begin, I will discuss the oxidative reactivity of condensed propene films. This work is conducted in a state-of-the-art ultra-high vacuum chamber equipped for operation at cryogenic substrate temperatures. Time-resolved reflection absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS) is used to track propene reactivity when films are exposed to a supersonic expansion of ground state oxygen atoms, O(³P). I demonstrate that propene reacts significantly on exposure, producing primarily propylene oxide and propanal. Oxide production is significant; partial oxidation products are rarely observed in gas phase studies and olefin oxides are incredibly important chemical intermediates in a variety of industrial processes. Regardless of initial film thickness, the reaction follows zero order kinetics, with a calculated activation energy of 0.5 kcal mol^-1. This low barrier closely matches that reported in gas phase studies, suggesting that the condensed-phase reaction is likely diffusion-limited. I also highlight that the propene deposition temperature has a substantial impact on reactivity. Films deposited below 50 K produce dramatically different RAIR spectra that correspond to a more amorphous film composition. These films are nearly unreactive with O(³P), indicating that oxygen diffusion is directly tied to the density and ordering in the more crystalline film.

This dependence on film structure is also observed in the second study, which explores embedding in and adsorption on crystalline, non-porous amorphous, and porous-amorphous water ice films. Using a combination of supersonic molecular beams, RAIRS and King and Wells mass spectrometry techniques, I demonstrate that direct embedding into the bulk is remarkably insensitive to film structure; the momentum barrier is identical between amorphous and porous-amorphous ice films. Below this barrier, however, sticking probabilities differ considerably between the different films, suggesting that the pore structure is more efficient at dissipating incident energy. These discoveries are critical for the accurate quantitative modeling of molecular uptake and reactivity on icy astrophysical bodies such as comets and planetismals. When taken together, these two studies provide fundamental mechanistic insight into the sticking, diffusion, and reactivity of small molecules on complex films, with a specific emphasis on the impact of film morphology and organization.

Our research examines the oxidation of semiconductor and semimetal surfaces using a novel, one-of-a-kind instrument that combines a supersonic molecular beam with an in-line scanning tunneling microscope (STM) in ultra-high vacuum. This new approach to surface reaction dynamics provides spatiotemporal information on surface oxidation over nanoscopic and mesoscopic length scales. We have uncovered the kinetic and morphological effects of oxidation conditions on three technologically relevant surfaces: Si(111)-7×7, highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG), and GaAs(110). A complete understanding of the oxidation mechanism of these surfaces is critical due to their technological applications and roles as model systems. Samples were exposed to O₂ with kinetic energies from 0.4-1.2 eV and impingement angles 0-45° from normal, with STM characterization between exposures. In some cases, we were able to monitor the evolution of specific features by revisiting the same nanoscopic locations. Our study of Si(111)-7×7 revealed two oxidation channels, leading to the formation of dark and bright reacted sites. The dark sites dominated the surface and exhibited almost no site selectivity while the bright sites preferred the corner sites of the 7×7 unit cell. Our observations suggest that two adsorption pathways, trapping-mediated and direct chemisorption, occur simultaneously. On HOPG, we found that different oxygen energies, incident angles, and surface temperatures produce morphologically distinct etching features: Anisotropic channels, circular pits, and hexagonal pits. Reaction probability increased with beam energy and demonstrated non-Arrhenius behavior with respect to surface temperature, peaking at around 1375 K. Finally, oxidation of GaAs(110) was found to proceed by two morphologically distinct, competing mechanisms: a homogeneous process leading to layer-by-layer oxide growth, and a heterogeneous process with oxide islands nucleating from surface defects. The rates of both mechanisms change with O₂ kinetic energy, with homogeneous oxidation dominating at lower energies (<0.7 eV) and heterogeneous oxidation with higher energies (≥1.0 eV). The results obtained in this work provide vital information about the morphological evolution and kinetics of semiconductor and semimetals, offering a comprehensive overview of the spatiotemporal correlations that govern oxidation dynamics on surfaces.

[1] Nature Communications, 8, 15357 (2017).

Diffusion of supported 3D nanoclusters (NCs) followed by coalescence leads to coarsening of ensembles of supported NCs via Smoluchowski Ripening (SR) which is a key pathway for degradation of supported metal catalysts. The dependence of the NC diffusion coefficient, D_N, on size N (in atoms) is the key factor controlling SR kinetics, and traditional treatments assumed simple monotonic decrease with increasing size. We analyze a stochastic model for diffusion of (100)-epitaxially supported fcc NCs mediated by diffusion of atoms around the surface of the NC. Multiple barriers for surface diffusion across and between facets, along step edges, etc. are chosen to accurately describe Ag [Lai and Evans, Phy. Rev. Materials 3 (2019) 026001]. KMC simulations reveal a complex oscillatory variation of D_N with N. Local minima D_N sometimes but not always correspond to N = N_c where the equilibrium Winterbottom NC structure is a closed-shell. Local maximum generally correspond to N = N_c + 3. The oscillatory behavior is expected to disappear for larger N above O(10²). Behavior has similarities to but also basic differences from that for 2D supported NCs [Lai et al Phys. Rev. B 96 (2017) 235406]. Through detailed analysis of the energetics of the 3D NC diffusion pathway (which involves dissolving and reforming facets), we can elucidate the above behavior as well as observed trends in effective diffusion barrier.

Field Ion and Field Emission Microscopies (FIM and FEM) enable correlative atomic to nanoscale imaging of the surface of a very sharp Rh needle, the apex size and shape of which models that of a Rh nanoparticle. FIM is used to map, with atomic lateral resolution, the Rh surface revealing a complex network of crystallographic facets, while FEM is used to observe and record O₂ dissociative adsorption and subsequent reaction with H₂ over this same surface of Rh in real-time with nano-scale lateral resolution. Since FEM imaging relies on local work function variations, it notably can be used to follow the fate of adsorbed oxygen atoms (O(ads)) on the Rh surface. As a result, we directly observe that the O₂ dissociative adsorption is mainly active on the Rh{012} regions. The application of Atom Probe Tomography (APT) provided a means to map the fate of the absorbed oxygen leading to bulk oxide formation through Rh{113} facets. Thus the correlative combination of FIM, FEM, and APT provides unique insight into the mechanism of bulk oxide formation starting from the dissociative oxygen absorption occurring at {012} facets and subsurface penetration of the adsorbed oxygen occurring through {113} facets. leading to a preferential accumulation of the oxygen within the bulk along the [111] direction. This work offers a unique methodology to explore the interactions between the different crystal facets of a complex surface, to explore the complex dynamics linking the surface and the bulk, and finally, offers exciting perspectives leading to a better understanding of heterogeneous catalysis and corrosion dynamics.

Recent development of the noncontact atomic force microscopy (nc-AFM) has opened new possibilities in different fields – imaging of organic molecules [1], controlling the charge state of adsorbed species [2], or enhanced chemical resolution of surface atoms [3]. I will focus on the emerging possibilities and opportunities in the field of oxide surfaces and their surface chemistry.

The limits of atomic resolution will be illustrated on clean and water-exposed binary oxides like TiO₂, In₂O₃ or iron oxides. The enhanced chemical resolution of nc-AFM offers a unique opportunity for approaching complex materials with ternary chemical composition. This will be demonstrated on bulk-terminated perovskites SrTiO₃ and KTaO₃. A dedicated cleaving procedure [4,5] allows preparing flat regions terminated by domains of SrO/TiO₂ (or KO/TaO₂) with a well-defined atomic structure. The surface stability, point defects, electronic structure, and chemical properties of such surfaces will be discussed and linked to the incipient-ferroelectric character of these materials.

[1] Gross, L.; Mohn, F.; Moll, N.; Liljeroth, P.; Meyer, G., Science 2009, 325, 1110

[2] Gross, L.; Mohn, F.; Liljeroth, P.; Repp, J.; Giessibl, F. J.; Meyer, G., Science 2009,324, 1428

[3] Sugimoto, Y.; Pou, P.; Abe, M.; Jelinek, P.; Perez, R.; Morita, S.; Custance, O., Nature 2007,446, 64

[4] I. Sokolovic, M. Schmid, U. Diebold, M. Setvin, Phys. Rev. Materials 3, 034407 (2019)

[5] M. Setvin, M. Reticcioli, F. Poelzleitner, J. Hulva, M. Schmid, L. A. Boatner, C. Franchini, U. Diebold, Science 359, 572-575 (2018)

Methanol’s interaction with iron oxide surfaces is of interest due to its potential as a hydrogen storage molecule, and from a fundamental perspective as a chemical probe for the reactivity of an oxide surface. We present here a study examining the adsorption and reaction of methanol on magnetite Fe₃O₄(001) at cryogenic temperatures using a combination of temperature programmed desorption (TPD), simulations, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). Methanol’s desorption profile from Fe₃O₄(001) is complicated, exhibiting peaks at 145, 175, 238, and 273 K corresponding to the desorption of intact methanol, as well as peaks at 350 and 516 K due to the reaction of methoxy intermediates. The saturation of a monolayer of methanol corresponds to 4 molecules/ unit cell, equivalent to the number of surface octahedral iron atoms. We probe the kinetics and thermodynamics of the desorption of molecular methanol using inversion analysis. Deconvolution of the complex desorption profile into individual peaks allows for calculation of both the desorption barrier and pre-factor of each feature. Low temperature scanning tunneling microscopy is used to observe the structure corresponding to each of the molecular desorption features. 20% of the adsorbed methanol reacts to form a methxoy intermediate by 180 K, which remains on the surface above room temperature after intact methanol has desorbed. This methoxy reacts via one of two channels, a recombination reaction with surface hydroxyls to form additional methanol at 350 K, and a disproportionation reaction to form methanol and formaldehyde at 516 K. Only 20% of the methoxy species undergo the disproportionation reaction, with most of them reacting via the 350 K pathway. Our study provides a detailed view of the adsorption and reaction of methanol and its surface intermediate methoxy on Fe₃O₄(001).