Skip to Content
Merck
  • Substrate Effects in the Supramolecular Assembly of 1,3,5-Benzene Tricarboxylic Acid on Graphite and Graphene.

Substrate Effects in the Supramolecular Assembly of 1,3,5-Benzene Tricarboxylic Acid on Graphite and Graphene.

Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids (2015-01-17)
J M MacLeod, J A Lipton-Duffin, D Cui, S De Feyter, F Rosei
ABSTRACT

The behavior of small molecules on a surface depends critically on both molecule-substrate and intermolecular interactions. We present here a detailed comparative investigation of 1,3,5-benzene tricarboxylic acid (trimesic acid, TMA) on two different surfaces: highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) and single-layer graphene (SLG) grown on a polycrystalline Cu foil. On the basis of high-resolution scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) images, we show that the epitaxy matrix for the hexagonal TMA chicken wire phase is identical on these two surfaces, and, using density functional theory (DFT) with a non-local van der Waals correlation contribution, we identify the most energetically favorable adsorption geometries. Simulated STM images based on these calculations suggest that the TMA lattice can stably adsorb on sites other than those identified to maximize binding interactions with the substrate. This is consistent with our net energy calculations that suggest that intermolecular interactions (TMA-TMA dimer bonding) are dominant over TMA-substrate interactions in stabilizing the system. STM images demonstrate the robustness of the TMA films on SLG, where the molecular network extends across the variable topography of the SLG substrates and remains intact after rinsing and drying the films. These results help to elucidate molecular behavior on SLG and suggest significant similarities between adsorption on HOPG and SLG.

MATERIALS
Product Number
Brand
Product Description

Sigma-Aldrich
Trimethylaluminum, packaged for use in deposition systems
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity
Sigma-Aldrich
Trimethylaluminum, 97%
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity
Sigma-Aldrich
Trimesic acid, 95%
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity
Sigma-Aldrich
Trimethylaluminum solution, 2.0 M in toluene
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity
Sigma-Aldrich
Heptanoic acid, 96%
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity
Sigma-Aldrich
Trimethylaluminum solution, 2.0 M in heptane
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity
Sigma-Aldrich
Heptanoic acid, 97%, FG
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity
Sigma-Aldrich
Heptanoic acid, natural, FG
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity
Sigma-Aldrich
Trimethylaluminum solution, 2.0 M in hexanes
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity
Sigma-Aldrich
Heptanoic acid, ≥99.0% (GC)
SKU
Pack Size
Availability
Price
Quantity