Pt monolayer on Fe(001) as an alternative cathode catalyst: a first principles study

Spin‐polarized density functional theory (DFT)‐based total energy calculations were performed to investigate the electronic structure of Pt monolayer on Fe(001) {Pt ML /Fe(001)} and its effect on O 2 dissociative adsorption. Local density of states (LDOS) at Pt surface shows induced spin polarization on Pt monolayer increasing unoccupied d zz orbital on Pt surface. The potential energy curves (PEC) for the reaction of Pt with O 2 show that the system produces a combination of lower activation barrier for O 2 dissociation and a weaker O binding than that of clean Pt(001). The modification of Pt surface electronic structure led to a favorable OPt d interaction with promotion of O unpaired electron antiparallel spin alignment with Pt spin as verified by the decrease in O and Pt magnetic moments upon O adsorption. Such results render stabilization and a lowering of energy cost for O 2 activation. The weaker O binding, however, may be attributed to the stronger metal–metal interlayer binding in Pt ML /Fe(001) than in Pt(001), which indicates an increased stability of Pt monolayer on Fe(001) than on its corresponding pure metal slab. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.