Self-assembly of meta-aminobenzoate on Cu(110).
A variety of structures of meta-aminobenzoate molecules adsorbed on the Cu(110) surface have been characterized by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) at a wide range of surface coverages, from a single molecule to saturated phases. At the start of molecular domain formation, individual molecules thermally diffuse to form chain structures via intermolecular hydrogen bonding. At higher surface coverages, there coexist three well-ordered phases, namely [Formula: see text] and chiral [Formula: see text] phases. The molecular orientation on the surface also varies with surface coverage. Flat-lying molecules are mainly observed at low surface coverage, while upright molecules start to appear as the surface becomes more highly covered. Our experimental findings and structural analysis are well supported by high-resolution STM images measured at 4.7 K and by molecular packing models with precise lattice parameters.
Rabot
Caroline
C
Surface Chemistry Laboratory, RIKEN, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
Hori
Masafumi
M
Katano
Satoshi
S
Kim
Yousoo
Y
Kawai
Maki
M