Exploring the Adsorption Mechanism of Tetracene on Ag(110) by STM and Dispersion-Corrected DFT

Abstract

Self-assembled strategy has been proven to be a promising vista in constructing organized low-dimensional nanostructures with molecular precision and versatile functionalities on solid surfaces. Herein, we investigate by a combination of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and dispersion-corrected density functional theory (DFT), the adsorption of tetracene molecules on the silver substrate and the mechanism mediating the self-assembly on Ag(110). As expected, ordered domain is formed on Ag(110) after adsorption with adjacent molecules being imaged with alternating bright or dim pattern regularly. While such behavior has been assigned previously to the difference of molecular adsorption height, herein, it is possible to investigate essentially the mechanism leading to the periodic alternation of brightness and dimness for tetracene adsorbed on Ag(110) thanks to the consideration of Van der Waals (vdW) dispersion force. It is demonstrated that the adsorption height in fact is same for both bright and dim molecules, while the adsorption site and the corresponding interfacial charge transfer play an important role in the formation of such pattern. Our report reveals that vdW dispersion interaction is crucial to appropriately describe the adsorption of tetracene on the silver substrate, and the formation of delicate molecular architectures on metal surfaces might also offers a promising approach towards molecular electronics.

Effect of Silver Nanoparticles on the Melting Behavior, Isothermal Crystallization Kinetics and Morphology of Polyoxymethylene

“…The synthesis and properties of Ag nanoparticles have attracted widespread attention owing to their unique volume effects, surface effects, and quantum size [21,22], as well as their high conductivity [23,24], excellent catalytic activities [25,26], and broad antiviral and antibacterial properties [27,28]. Meanwhile, nanocomposites containing Ag nanoparticles have widely been applied in a variety of areas [29] such as flexible supercapacitor electrodes [30], solar energy harvesting [31], catalytic degradation of organic dyes [32], wound healing [33], and so on.…”