Self-assembly of a pyridine-terminated thiol monolayer on Au(111)

Christophe Silien, Manfred Buck, Gudrun Goretzki, Dorothée Lahaye, Neil R. Champness, Tobias Weidner, Michael Zharnikov

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of 3-(4-pyridine-4-yl-phenyl)-propane-1- thiol (PyP3) on Au(111)/mica have been studied by scanning tunneling microscopy (SIM), polarization-modulated infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS), high-resolution X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (HRXPS), and near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy. The quality of the SAM is found to be strongly dependent on the solvent. Substantial gold corrosion is observed if pure ethanol is used. In contrast, highly ordered and densely packed SAMs are formed from acetonitrile or a KOH/ethanol mixture. The structure is described by a 2√3 × √3 unit cell with the aromatic moiety oriented nearly perpendicular to the surface. The PyP3 films form with the pyridine moiety deprotonated. Variation of pH allows reversible protonation without measurable damage of the SAM.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)959-967
Number of pages9
JournalLangmuir
Volume25
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 20 Jan 2009
Externally publishedYes

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Self-assembly of a pyridine-terminated thiol monolayer on Au(111)'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this