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The Role of a Double Molecular Anchor on the Mobility and Self‐Assembly of Thiols on Au(111): The Case of Mercaptobenzoic Acid
Author(s) -
Rodríguez González Miriam C.,
Carro Pilar,
Pensa Evangelina,
Vericat Carolina,
Salvarezza Roberto,
Hernández Creus Alberto
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
chemphyschem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.016
H-Index - 140
eISSN - 1439-7641
pISSN - 1439-4235
DOI - 10.1002/cphc.201601313
Subject(s) - scanning tunneling microscope , monolayer , chemistry , molecule , self assembled monolayer , self assembly , x ray photoelectron spectroscopy , density functional theory , substrate (aquarium) , thiol , adsorption , molecular dynamics , chemical physics , crystallography , molecular self assembly , phase (matter) , computational chemistry , nanotechnology , materials science , organic chemistry , chemical engineering , biochemistry , oceanography , geology , engineering
The dynamics of the self‐assembly process of thiol molecules on Au(111) is affected by the interplay between molecule–substrate and molecule–molecule interactions. Therefore, it is interesting to explore the effect of a second anchor to the gold surface, in addition to the S atom, on both the order and the feasibility of phase transitions in self‐assembled monolayers. To assess the role of an additional O anchor, we have compared the adsorption of two mercaptobenzoic acid isomers, 2‐mercaptobenzoic acid (2‐MBA) and 4‐mercaptobenzoic acid (4‐MBA), on Au(111). Results from scanning tunneling microscopy, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, electrochemical techniques, and density functional theory calculations show that the additional O anchor in 2‐MBA hinders surface mobility, reducing domain size and impeding the molecular reorganization involved in phase transition to denser phases on the Au(111) substrates. This knowledge can help to predict the range order and molecular density of the thiol SAM depending on the chemical structure of the adsorbate.