title: Trimethyltin-mediated covalent gold-carbon bond formation.
abstract: We study the formation of covalent gold-carbon bonds in benzyltrimethylstannane (C10H16Sn) deposited on Au in ultra-high-vacuum conditions. Through X-ray photoemission spectroscopy and X-ray absorption measurements, we find that the molecule fragments at the Sn-benzyl bond when exposed to Au surfaces at temperatures as low as -110 °C. The resulting benzyl species is stabilized by the presence of Au(111) but only forms covalent Au-C bonds on more reactive Au surfaces like Au(110). We also present spectroscopic proof for the existence of an electronic "gateway" state localized on the Au-C bond that is responsible for its unique electronic properties. Finally, we use DFT-based nudged elastic band calculations to elucidate the crucial role played by the under-coordinated Au surface in the formation of Au-C bonds.
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics and ⊥Department of Chemistry, Columbia University , New York, New York 10027, United States.
authors.forename: Arunabh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Batra
authors.forename: Gregor
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kladnik
authors.forename: Narjes
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Gorjizadeh
authors.forename: Jeffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Meisner
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Steigerwald
authors.forename: Colin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nuckolls
authors.forename: Su Ying
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Quek
authors.forename: Dean
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cvetko
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Morgante
authors.forename: Latha
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Venkataraman