Observation and Destruction of an Elusive Adsorbate with STM: O{sub 2}/TiO{sub 2}(110)

Journal Article · Thu Nov 18 23:00:00 EST 2010 · Physical Review Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVLETT.105.216101· OSTI ID:21541738

Scheiber, Philipp; Riss, Alexander; Schmid, Michael; Varga, Peter; Diebold, Ulrike ^[1]

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1. Institute of Applied Physics, Vienna University of Technology, Wiedner Hauptstrasse 8-10, 1040 Vienna (Austria)

When a slightly defective rutile TiO{sub 2}(110) surface is exposed to O{sub 2} at elevated temperatures, the molecule dissociates at defects, filling O vacancies (V{sub O}) and creating O adatoms (O{sub ad}) on Ti{sub 5c} rows. The adsorption of molecular O{sub 2} at low temperatures has remained controversial. Low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy of O{sub 2}, dosed on TiO{sub 2}(110) at a sample temperature of {approx_equal}100 K and imaged at 17 K, shows a molecular precursor at V{sub O} as a faint change in contrast. The adsorbed O{sub 2} easily dissociates during the STM measurements, and the formation of O{sub ad}'s at both sides of the original V{sub O} is observed.

• OSTI ID: 21541738
• Journal Information: Physical Review Letters, Journal Name: Physical Review Letters Journal Issue: 21 Vol. 105; ISSN 0031-9007; ISSN PRLTAO
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
CHALCOGENIDES
CRYSTAL DEFECTS
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
MATERIALS
MICROSCOPY
MINERALS
MOLECULES
OXIDE MINERALS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POINT DEFECTS
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE MINERALS
RUTILE
SCANNING TUNNELING MICROSCOPY
SURFACES
TEMPERATURE RANGE
TEMPERATURE RANGE 0065-0273 K
TITANIUM COMPOUNDS
TITANIUM OXIDES
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS
VACANCIES