Adsorption of Au and Pd on Ruthenium-Supported Bilayer Silica

Abstract

Adsorption of Au and Pd over bilayer SiO2/Ru has been investigated using scanning-probe microscopy, X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS), and density functional theory (DFT). Low temperature (∼5 K) atomic force (AFM) and scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) measurements reveal the presence of small adsorption features after exposing the samples to small doses of either metal. In the case of Pd, we note a homogeneous distribution of adsorbates across the entire surface, which consists of both amorphous and crystalline phases. Au, however, adsorbs only over amorphous areas and domain boundaries, which possess larger pores than can be found in the ordered portions of the film. DFT calculations reveal that this difference is rooted in the pore-size-dependent barriers for diffusion of the two metals into the film, where they can then bind stably at the Ru interface. Auger parameter analysis of the Pd 3d and Au 4f core-levels from atoms binding in this manner show upward orbital-energy shifts, which, according...