Growth and Organization of an Organic Molecular Monolayer on TiO2: Catechol on Anatase (101)
- 4 May 2011
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Chemical Society (ACS) in Journal of the American Chemical Society
- Vol. 133 (20), 7816-7823
- https://doi.org/10.1021/ja200001r
Abstract
Anatase TiO2 is a widely used photocatalytic material, and catechol (1,2-benzendiol) is a model organic sensitizer for dye-sensitized solar cells. The growth and the organization of a catecholate monolayer on the anatase (101) surface were investigated with scanning tunneling microscopy and density functional theory calculations. Isolated molecules adsorb preferentially at steps. On anatase terraces, monodentate (‘D1’) and bidentate (‘D2’) conformations are both present in the dilute limit, and frequent interconversions can take place between these two species. A D1 catechol is mobile at room temperature and can explore the most favorable surface adsorption sites, whereas D2 is essentially immobile. When a D1 molecule arrives in proximity of another adsorbed catechol in an adjacent row, it is energetically convenient for them to pair up in nearest-neighbor positions taking a D2–D2 or D2–D1 configuration. This intermolecular interaction, which is largely substrate mediated, causes the formation of one-dimensional catecholate islands that can change in shape but are stable to break-up. The change between D1 and D2 conformations drives both the dynamics and the energetics of this model system and is possibly of importance in the functionalization of dye-sensitized solar cells.This publication has 41 references indexed in Scilit:
- TiO2 photocatalysis and related surface phenomenaSurface Science Reports, 2008
- Theoretical Studies of Photoinduced Electron Transfer in Dye-Sensitized TiO2Annual Review of Physical Chemistry, 2007
- Interaction of photoactive catechol with TiO2 anatase (101) surface: A periodic density functional theory studyChemical Physics, 2007
- Escape dynamics of photoexcited electrons at catechol:Physical Review B, 2006
- Computational Studies of Catechol and Water Interactions with Titanium Oxide NanoparticlesThe Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 2003
- Quantum Dynamics Simulations of Interfacial Electron Transfer in Sensitized TiO2 SemiconductorsJournal of the American Chemical Society, 2003
- The surface science of titanium dioxideSurface Science Reports, 2003
- Photoelectrochemical cellsNature, 2001
- Quantum Chemical Study of Photoinjection Processes in Dye-Sensitized TiO2 NanoparticlesThe Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 2000
- Photocatalysis on TiO2 Surfaces: Principles, Mechanisms, and Selected ResultsChemical Reviews, 1995