Chemisorption and reaction of phenyl iodide at Cu(110) surfaces: a combined STM and XPS study

The chemisorption of phenyl iodide at a Cu(1 1 0) surface at 295 K has been studied with STM and XPS. Dissociative adsorption leads to chemisorbed iodine, which the STM shows to have a c(2 x 2) structure, and adsorbed phenyl groups which appear in the STM images as roughly circular features, approximately 0.7 nm in diameter and 0.1 nm above the iodine adlayer. The phenyl groups are stabilised at the top and bottom of step edges forming chains with a regular inter-phenyl spacing of 1.0 nm. Chains are also observed on the terraces but here they are usually "paired" in the <1 0 0> direction. From a comparison of the phenyl and iodine structures the adsorption site of the phenyl rings is shown to be either the two fold hollows or the atop sites with each ring blocking approximately four iodine adsorption sites. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.