Absolute coverage determination of CO on Ni(111)

Abstract

The adsorption of CO on Ni(111) has been studied using LEED and calibrated Auger measurements in order to determine the absolute amount of adsorbed CO molecules. At room temperature and CO pressures of up to 1.3×10⁻³ Pa a saturation coverage of ϑ_CO?0.28, corresponding to 5.2×10¹⁴ molecules per cm², has been obtained. This is contrary to the commonly accepted opinion that the saturation coverage of nondissociated CO on various transition metals should always amount to about 1×10¹⁵ molecules per cm² irrespective of the underlying substrate structure.