Improved description of the structure of molecular and layered crystals: ab initio DFT calculations with van der Waals corrections

Square planar Cu(i) stabilized by a pyridinediimine ligand

A set of distorted square planar Cu(i) complexes were synthesized and characterized utilizing the sterically encumbering pyridinediimine ligand, ^iPrPDI (where ^iPrPDI = 2,6-(2,6-ⁱPr₂C₆H₃NCMe)₂C₅H₃N).

Does hydrohalic acid HX (X = F, Cl) form true N-protonated twisted amide salts? Effects of anions on the ion-pair interactions and on the amide moiety in N-protonated tricyclic twisted amide salts

The [BF₄]⁻ and [RSO₃]⁻ anions interact with N-protonated amide cations through N–H⋯F and N–H⋯O strong hydrogen bonds and hydrohalic acids form very weak N⋯H–X hydrogen bonds.

Insights into enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity of C60 modified g-C3N4 hybrids: the role of nitrogen

Unsaturated N₂ atoms in the interfaces play a major role in promoting the photocatalytic performance of C₆₀ modified g-C₃N₄ hybrids.

Realizing half-metallicity in K2CoF4 exfoliated nanosheets via defect engineering

We explored the possibility of realizing a 2D exfoliated ionic bonding nanosheet, and investigated its electronic and magnetic properties.

Thickness dependence of surface energy and contact angle of water droplets on ultrathin MoS2 films

We have performed a systematic density functional study of surface energy of MoS₂ films as a function of thickness from one to twelve layers with the consideration of van der Waals (vdW) interactions using the vdW-DF and DFT-D2 methods.

Single layer PbI2: hydrogenation-driven reconstructions

By performing density functional theory-based calculations, we investigate how a hydrogen atom interacts with the surfaces of monolayer PbI₂ and how one- and two-side hydrogenation modifies its structural, electronic, and magnetic properties.

Revealing the Buried Metal-Organic Interface: Restructuring of the First Layer by van der Waals Forces

With the use of molecular manipulation in a cryogenic scanning tunneling microscope, the structure and rearrangement of sexiphenyl molecules at the buried interface of the organic film with the Cu(110) substrate surface have been revealed. It is shown that a reconstruction of the first monolayer of flat lying molecules occurs due to the van der Waals pressure from subsequent layers. In this rearrangement, additional sexiphenyl molecules are forced into the established complete monolayer and adopt an edge-on configuration. Incorporation of second layer molecules into the first layer is also demonstrated by purposely pushing sexiphenyl molecules with the STM tip. The results indicate that even chemisorbed organic layers at interfaces can be significantly influenced by external stress from van der Waals forces of subsequent layers.

Role of Interlayer Coupling on the Evolution of Band Edges in Few-Layer Phosphorene

Using first-principles calculations, we have investigated the evolution of band edges in few-layer phosphorene as a function of the number of P layers. Our results predict that monolayer phosphorene is an indirect band gap semiconductor and its valence band edge is extremely sensitive to strain. Its band gap could undergo an indirect-to-direct transition under a lattice expansion as small as 1% along the zigzag direction. A semiempirical interlayer coupling model is proposed, which can reproduce the evolution of valence band edges obtained by first-principles calculations well. We conclude that the interlayer coupling plays a dominant role in the evolution of the band edges via decreasing both band gap and carrier effective masses with the increase of phosphorene thickness. Scrutiny of the orbital-decomposed band structure provides a better understanding of the upward shift of the valence band maximum, surpassing that of the conduction band minimum.

Water on BN doped benzene: a hard test for exchange-correlation functionals and the impact of exact exchange on weak binding

Density functional theory (DFT) studies of weakly interacting complexes have recently focused on the importance of van der Waals dispersion forces, whereas the role of exchange has received far less attention. Here, by exploiting the subtle binding between water and a boron and nitrogen doped benzene derivative (1,2-azaborine) we show how exact exchange can alter the binding conformation within a complex. Benchmark values have been calculated for three orientations of the water monomer on 1,2-azaborine from explicitly correlated quantum chemical methods, and we have also used diffusion quantum Monte Carlo. For a host of popular DFT exchange-correlation functionals we show that the lack of exact exchange leads to the wrong lowest energy orientation of water on 1,2-azaborine. As such, we suggest that a high proportion of exact exchange and the associated improvement in the electronic structure could be needed for the accurate prediction of physisorption sites on doped surfaces and in complex organic molecules. Meanwhile to predict correct absolute interaction energies an accurate description of exchange needs to be augmented by dispersion inclusive functionals, and certain non-local van der Waals functionals (optB88- and optB86b-vdW) perform very well for absolute interaction energies. Through a comparison with water on benzene and borazine (B3N3H6) we show that these results could have implications for the interaction of water with doped graphene surfaces, and suggest a possible way of tuning the interaction energy.

Comparative study of van der Waals corrections to the bulk properties of graphite

Graphite is a stack of honeycomb (graphene) layers bound together by nonlocal, long-range van der Waals (vdW) forces, which are poorly described by density functional theory (DFT) within local or semilocal exchange-correlation functionals. Several approximations have been proposed to add a vdW correction to the DFT total energies (Stefan Grimme (D2 and D3) with different damping functions (D3-BJ), Tkatchenko-Scheffler (TS) without and with self-consistent screening (TS  +  SCS) effects). Those corrections have remarkly improved the agreement between our results and experiment for the interlayer distance (from 3.9 to 0.6%) [corrected] and high-level random-phase approximation (RPA) calculations for interlayer binding energy (from 69.5 to 1.5%). [corrected]. We report a systematic investigation of various structural, energetic and electron properties with the aforementioned vdW corrections followed by comparison with experimental and theoretical RPA data. Comparison between the resulting relative errors shows that the TS  +  SCS correction provides the best results; the other corrections yield significantly larger errors for at least one of the studied properties. If considerations of computational costs or convergence problems rule out the TS  +  SCS approach, we recommend the D3-BJ correction. Comparison between the computed π(z)Γ-splitting and experimental results shows disagreements of 10% or more with all vdW corrections. Even the computationally more expensive hybrid PBE0 has proved unable to improve the agreement with the measured splitting. Our results indicate that improvements of the exchange-correlation functionals beyond the vdW corrections are necessary to accurately describe the band structure of graphite.

Novel lithium-nitrogen compounds at ambient and high pressures

Using ab initio evolutionary simulations, we predict the existence of five novel stable Li-N compounds at pressures from 0 to 100 GPa (Li₁₃N, Li₅N, Li₃N₂, LiN₂, and LiN₅). Structures of these compounds contain isolated N atoms, N₂ dimers, polyacetylene-like N chains and N₅ rings, respectively. The structure of Li₁₃N consists of Li atoms and Li₁₂N icosahedra (with N atom in the center of the Li₁₂ icosahedron) – such icosahedra are not described by Wade-Jemmis electron counting rules and are unique. Electronic structure of Li-N compounds is found to dramatically depend on composition and pressure, making this system ideal for studying metal-insulator transitions. For example, the sequence of lowest-enthalpy structures of LiN₃ shows peculiar electronic structure changes with increasing pressure: metal-insulator-metal-insulator. This work also resolves the previous controversies of theory and experiment on Li₂N₂.

Electronic, structural, and substrate effect properties of single-layer covalent organic frameworks

Recently synthesized two-dimensional covalent organic frameworks (COFs) exhibit high surface area, large pore size, and unique structural architectures, making them promising materials for various energy applications. Here, a total of nine COFs structures, including two deposited on a hexagonal boron nitride substrate, are investigated using density functional theory, quasi-particle many-body theory within the GW approximation, and an image charge model. The structures considered belong to two major families (thiophene-based COF-n (T-COF-n) and tetrakis (4-aminophenyl) porphyrin-x (TAPP-x)) differing from the presence of B-O or C=N linkers. While T-COF-n structures are shown to constitute planar networks, TAPP-x systems can display non-negligible corrugation due to the out-of-plane rotation of phenyl rings. We find that the electronic properties do not differ significantly when altering the chain molecules within each family. Many-body effects are shown to lead to large band-gap increase while the presence of the substrate yields appreciable reductions of the gaps, due to substrate polarization effects.

Two-Dimensional Indium Selenides Compounds: An Ab Initio Study

We use first-principle calculations to investigate the electronic structure of InSe and In2Se3. The interlayer binding energy is found to be in the same range as for other 2D systems, and the monolayers are found to be dynamically stable, which suggest the possibility to obtain them as isolated layers. The GW approximation including spin-orbit is used to obtain the bandgaps, which are in the range relevant for application in electronics. Also, it is shown that an electric field perpendicular to the layers can induce a semiconductor to metal transition in this family of compounds.

van der Waals dispersion interactions in molecular materials: beyond pairwise additivity

van der Waals (vdW) dispersion interactions are a key ingredient in the structure, stability, and response properties of many molecular materials and essential for us to be able to understand and design novel intricate molecular systems. Pairwise-additive models of vdW interactions are ubiquitous, but neglect their true quantum-mechanical many-body nature. In this perspective we focus on recent developments and applications of methods that can capture collective and many-body effects in vdW interactions. Highlighting a number of recent studies in this area, we demonstrate both the need for and usefulness of explicit many-body treatments for obtaining qualitative and quantitative accuracy for modelling molecular materials, with applications presented for small-molecule dimers, supramolecular host-guest complexes, and finally stability and polymorphism in molecular crystals.

Extending the applicability of the Tkatchenko-Scheffler dispersion correction via iterative Hirshfeld partitioning

Recently we have demonstrated that the applicability of the Tkatchenko-Scheffler (TS) method for calculating dispersion corrections to density-functional theory can be extended to ionic systems if the Hirshfeld method for estimating effective volumes and charges of atoms in molecules or solids (AIM's) is replaced by its iterative variant [T. Bučko, S. Lebègue, J. Hafner, and J. Ángyán, J. Chem. Theory Comput. 9, 4293 (2013)]. The standard Hirshfeld method uses neutral atoms as a reference, whereas in the iterative Hirshfeld (HI) scheme the fractionally charged atomic reference states are determined self-consistently. We show that the HI method predicts more realistic AIM charges and that the TS/HI approach leads to polarizabilities and C6 dispersion coefficients in ionic or partially ionic systems which are, as expected, larger for anions than for cations (in contrast to the conventional TS method). For crystalline materials, the new algorithm predicts polarizabilities per unit cell in better agreement with the values derived from the Clausius-Mosotti equation. The applicability of the TS/HI method has been tested for a wide variety of molecular and solid-state systems. It is demonstrated that for systems dominated by covalent interactions and/or dispersion forces the TS/HI method leads to the same results as the conventional TS approach. The difference between the TS/HI and TS approaches increases with increasing ionicity. A detailed comparison is presented for isoelectronic series of octet compounds, layered crystals, complex intermetallic compounds, and hydrides, and for crystals built of molecules or containing molecular anions. It is demonstrated that only the TS/HI method leads to accurate results for systems where both electrostatic and dispersion interactions are important, as illustrated for Li-intercalated graphite and for molecular adsorption on the surfaces in ionic solids and in the cavities of zeolites.

Achieving type I, II, and III heterojunctions using functionalized MXene

In the present work, type I, II, and III heterostructures are constructed with the same base material using three representative functionalized monolayer scandium carbides (Sc2CF2, Sc2C(OH)2, and Sc2CO2) by first-principles calculations based on density functional theory. In contrast to general bilayer heterosystems composed of two-dimensional semiconductors, type I and III heterojunctions are obtained in one Sc2CF2/Sc2CO2 system and the remains of the functionalized Sc2C heterostructures, respectively. It is noteworthy that the same monolayer Sc2CF2 and Sc2CO2 constituents lead to dissimilar heterostructure types in the two Sc2CF2/Sc2CO2 systems by modifying the stacking interface. In addition, in the two Sc2CF2/Sc2CO2 systems, remarkable changes in the heterojunction type are induced by a strain, and two distinct type-II heterostructures are generated where one layer with the conduction band minimum state and the other layer including the valence band maximum level are different. The present work suggests an attractive direction to obtain all heterostructure types with the same base material for novel nanodevices in various fields such as photonics, electronics, and optoelectronics using only the two monolayer components Sc2CF2 and Sc2CO2.

Dynamical effects on the magnetic properties of dithiazolyl bistable materials

The magnetic properties of molecule-based magnets are commonly rationalized by considering only a single nuclear configuration of the system under study (usually an X-ray crystal structure). Here, by means of a computational study, we compare the results obtained using such a static approach with those obtained by explicitly accounting for thermal fluctuations, and uncover the serious limitations of the static perspective when dealing with magnetic crystals whose radicals undergo wide-amplitude motions. As a proof of concept, these limitations are illustrated for the magnetically bistable 1,3,5-trithia-2,4,6-triazapentalenyl (TTTA) material. For its high-temperature phase at 300 K, we show that nuclear dynamics induce large fluctuations in the magnetic exchange interactions (JAB) between spins (up to 1000% of the average value). These deviations result in a ∼20% difference between the 300 K magnetic susceptibility computed by explicitly considering the nuclear dynamics and that computed using the X-ray structure, the former being in better agreement with the experimental data. The unveiled strong coupling between JAB interactions and intermolecular vibrations reveals that considering JAB as a constant value at a given temperature (as always done in molecular magnetism) leads to a flawed description of the magnetism of TTTA. Instead, the physically relevant concept in this case is the statistical distribution of JAB values. The discovery that a single X-ray structure is not adequate enough to interpret the magnetic properties of TTTA is also expected to be decisive in other organic magnets with dominant exchange interactions propagating through labile π-π networks.

Coverage dependent water dissociative adsorption on Fe(110) from DFT computation

Using density functional theory calculations and ab initio atomistic thermodynamics, H2O adsorption and dissociation on the Fe(110) p(4 × 4) surface at different coverages have been computed. At the lowest coverage, the adsorbed H2O, OH, O and H species can migrate easily on the surface. For (H2O)n adsorption, H2O molecules donating H atoms for H-bonding adsorb more strongly than those accepting H atoms for H-bonding. Monomeric H2O dissociation is favored both thermodynamically and kinetically. On nO pre-covered Fe(110) surfaces (n = 1-8), H2O dissociation is accessible for nO + H2O (n = 1-7) both kinetically and thermodynamically, while H2O desorption instead of dissociation occurs at n = 8. With the increased number of surface O atoms, H2 dissociative adsorption energies vary in a narrow range for n = 1-4 and decrease for n = 5-7, while at n = 8, the surface does not adsorb H2. At low OH coverage (n = 2, 4), OH groups are perpendicularly adsorbed without H-bonding, while for n≥ 6, adsorbed OH groups are linearly arranged and stabilized by H-bonding. The maximal OH coverage (n = 12) is 0.75 ML and the reasonable O coverage (n = 7) is 0.44 ML, in line with the experiment. The calculated desorption temperatures of H2O and H2 agree well with the available experimental data. These results provide fundamental insights into water-involved reactions catalyzed by iron and interaction mechanisms of water interaction with metal surfaces.

A density-functional study on the electronic and vibrational properties of layered antimony telluride

We present a comprehensive survey of electronic and lattice-dynamical properties of crystalline antimony telluride (Sb2Te3). In a first step, the electronic structure and chemical bonding have been investigated, followed by calculations of the atomic force constants, phonon dispersion relationships and densities of states. Then, (macroscopic) physical properties of Sb2Te3 have been computed, namely, the atomic thermal displacement parameters, the Grüneisen parameter γ, the volume expansion of the lattice, and finally the bulk modulus B. We compare theoretical results from three popular and economic density-functional theory (DFT) approaches: the local density approximation (LDA), the generalized gradient approximation (GGA), and a posteriori dispersion corrections to the latter. Despite its simplicity, the LDA shows excellent performance for all properties investigated-including the Grüneisen parameter, which only the LDA is able to recover with confidence. In the absence of computationally more demanding hybrid DFT methods, the LDA seems to be a good choice for further lattice dynamical studies of Sb2Te3 and related layered telluride materials.

A first-principles study on three-dimensional covalently-bonded hexagonal boron nitride nanoribbons

We studied three-dimensional honeycomb-structure boron nitride (BN) allotrope using first-principles calculations and the tight-binding method. Interconnected by sp(3)-bonding at the vertices, hexagonal BN nanoribbons construct highly-porous, covalently-bonded hexagonal BN nanoribbons (CBBNs). We investigated the structural and mechanical properties of CBBNs with various sizes, compared with those of carbon and other BN allotropes. The mechanical and thermal stabilities are also checked. Our calculations show that, despite the high porosity and low mass density, CBBNs are stable and mechanically hard materials as cubic BN. Moreover, our calculated results suggest that CBBNs can be regarded as a binary alloy of sp(2)- and sp(3)-bonded BNs following the Vegard's rule in average bond lengths and bulk moduli. Calculated band structures show that the band gap of CBBNs has similar variation upon increasing size as BN nanoribbons and is also limited by the second-neighbor interaction between the pz states of sp(2)-bonded atoms in adjacent nanoribbons.

Atomistic insight into the oxidation of monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides: from structures to electronic properties

Monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) stand out in two-dimensional (2D) materials due to their potential applications in future microelectronic and optoelectronic devices.

Theoretical insights into structure, bonding, reactivity and importance of ion-pair interactions in Kirby's tetrafluoroboric acid salts of twisted amides

The hydrolysis of amide 1 is more exothermic and is more favorable than amides 2 and 3 with bridgehead methyl.

Towards an accurate and computationally-efficient modelling of Fe(ii)-based spin crossover materials

A theoretical approach is proposed to accurately calculate the LS–HS energy gap of SCO complexes in the solid state.

Tuning the electronic properties of Ti–MoS2 contacts through introducing vacancies in monolayer MoS2

Ti–MoS₂ top contacts with intrinsic vacancies in monolayer MoS₂ show novel electronic structures and electronic properties.

Coverage dependent adsorption and co-adsorption of CO and H2 on the CdI2-antitype metallic Mo2C(001) surface

The adsorption and co-adsorption of CO and H₂ at different coverage on the CdI₂-antitype metallic Mo₂C(001) surface termination have been systematically computed at the level of periodic density functional theory.

Effect of vacancies in monolayer MoS2 on electronic properties of Mo–MoS2 contacts

Revealing the influence of intrinsic defects in monolayer MoS₂ on the electronic nature of metal–MoS₂ contacts is particularly critical for their practical use as nanoelectronic devices.

Anisotropic displacement parameters from dispersion-corrected DFT methods and their experimental validation by temperature-dependent X-ray diffraction

How reliably can anisotropic displacement parameters be derived from theory? Experiments and computations on pentachloropyridine shed new light on this question.

First-principles prediction of graphene/SnO2 heterostructure as a promising candidate for FET

Very recently, graphene/SnO₂ heterostructures (G/SnO₂ HTSs) were successfully synthesized experimentally.

Graphene layers on Si-face and C-face surfaces and interaction with Si and C atoms in layer controlled graphene growth on SiC substrates

It is important to understand the interface and interaction between graphene layers and SiC surfaces as well as the interaction of key intermediate Si and C atoms with these surfaces and interfaces in epitaxial graphene growth on SiC substrates.

Lithium boride sheet and nanotubes: structure and hydrogen storage

A stable lithium boride sheet and its corresponding nanotubes are proposed as potential candidates for hydrogen storage.

Band gap opening in bilayer silicene by alkali metal intercalation

Recently, bilayer and multilayer silicene have attracted increased attention following the boom of silicene, which holds great promise for future applications in microelectronic devices. Herein we systematically investigate all stacking configurations of bilayer silicene and the corresponding electronic properties. Strong coupling is found between two silicene layers, which destroys the Dirac cones in the band structures of pristine silicene and makes bilayer silicene sheets metallic. However, intercalation of alkali metal (especially potassium) can effectively decouple the interaction between two silicene layers. In the K-intercalated bilayer silicene (KSi4), the Dirac cones are recovered with a small band gap of 0.27 eV located about 0.55 eV below the Fermi level. Furthermore, intercalation of K(+) cations in bilayer silicene (K(+)Si4) results in a semiconductor with a moderate band gap of 0.43 eV, making it ideal for microelectronic applications.

Graphene oxide as a promising hole injection layer for MoS₂-based electronic devices

The excellent physical and semiconducting properties of transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) monolayers make them promising materials for many applications. The TMDC monolayer MoS2 has gained significant attention as a channel material for next-generation transistors. However, while n-type single-layer MoS2 devices can be made with relative ease, fabrication of p-type transistors remains a challenge as the Fermi-level of elemental metals used as contacts are pinned close to the conduction band leading to large p-type Schottky barrier heights (SBH). Here, we propose the utilization of graphene oxide (GO) as an efficient hole injection layer for single-layer MoS2-based electronic and optoelectronic devices. Using first-principles computations, we demonstrate that GO forms a p-type contact with monolayer MoS2, and that the p-type SBH can be made smaller by increasing the oxygen concentration and the fraction of epoxy functional groups in GO. Our analysis shows that this is possible due to the high work function of GO and the relatively weak Fermi-level pinning at the MoS2/GO interfaces compared to traditional MoS2/metal systems (common metals are Ag, Al, Au, Ir, Pd, Pt). The combination of easy-to-fabricate and inexpensive GO with MoS2 could be promising for the development of hybrid all-2D p-type electronic and optoelectronic devices on flexible substrates.

Unusual role of epilayer-substrate interactions in determining orientational relations in van der Waals epitaxy

Using selected-area low-energy electron diffraction analysis, we showed strict orientational alignment of monolayer hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) crystallites with Cu(100) surface lattices of Cu foil substrates during atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition. In sharp contrast, the graphene-Cu(100) system is well-known to assume a wide range of rotations despite graphene's crystallographic similarity to h-BN. Our density functional theory calculations uncovered the origin of this surprising difference: The crystallite orientation is determined during nucleation by interactions between the cluster's edges and the substrate. Unlike the weaker B- and N-Cu interactions, strong C-Cu interactions rearrange surface Cu atoms, resulting in the aligned geometry not being a distinct minimum in total energy. The discovery made in this specific case runs counter to the conventional wisdom that strong epilayer-substrate interactions enhance orientational alignment in epitaxy and sheds light on the factors that determine orientational relation in van der Waals epitaxy of 2D materials.