Palladium Monomers, Dimers, and Trimers on the MgO(001) Surface Viewed Individually

Size and Shape Dependence of the Electronic Structure of Gold Nanoclusters on TiO2

Understanding the mechanism behind the superior catalytic power of single- or few-atom heterogeneous catalysts has become an important topic in surface chemistry. This is particularly the case for gold, with TiO₂ being an efficient support. Here we use scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy with theoretical calculations to investigate the adsorption geometry and local electronic structure of several-atom Au clusters on rutile TiO₂(110), with the clusters fabricated by controlled manipulation of single atoms. Our study confirms that Au₁ and Au₂ clusters prefer adsorption at surface O vacancies. Au₃ clusters adsorb at O vacancies in a linear-chain configuration parallel to the surface; in the absence of O vacancies they adsorb at Ti_5c sites with a structure of a vertically pointing upright triangle. We find that both the electronic structure and cluster-substrate charge transfer depend critically on the cluster size, bonding configuration, and local environment. This suggests the possibility of engineering cluster selectivity for specific catalytic reactions.

Tunable reactivity of supported single metal atoms by impurity engineering of the MgO(001) support

The reactivity of single Pd and Au atoms supported by MgO(001) can be tuned by surface doping.

Splitting methanol on ultra-thin MgO(100) films deposited on a Mo substrate

The dissociation of methanol is successfully proposed on metal-supported ultra-thin MgO(100) films.

Spontaneous Oxidation of Ni Nanoclusters on MgO Monolayers Induced by Segregation of Interfacial Oxygen

We report the study of Ni nanoclusters deposited on MgO/Ag(100) ultrathin films (one monolayer) at T = 200 K. We show by STM analysis and DFT calculations that in the limit of low Ni coverage the formation of nanoclusters of four to six atoms occurs and that these aggregates are flat rather than 3D, as expected for Ni tetramers, pentamers, or hexamers. Both the shape of the clusters and the interatomic distance between neighboring Ni atoms are indicative that the nanoparticles do not consist of pure metal atoms but that a NiyOx structure has formed thanks to the availability of atomic oxygen accumulated at the MgO/Ag interface, with Ni clusters acting as oxygen pumps. Besides being of relevance in view of the use of metal nanoclusters in catalysis and other applications, this finding gives a further proof of the peculiar behavior of ultrathin oxide films.

Bimetallic dimers adsorbed on a defect-free MgO(001) surface: bonding, structure and reactivity

A large number of computational studies have been devoted to the investigation of monometallic clusters supported by MgO. However, in practice, catalysis shows that multicomponent catalytic systems often win in catalytic performance over single component systems. In this study, the geometrical and electronic structure, stability and chemisorption properties of M1M2 metal dimers (M1, M2 = Ru, Rh, Pd, Ir, Pt) supported by defect free MgO(001) have been investigated in the framework of density functional theory. The oxygen sites of MgO(001) are the preferred adsorption sites for all the studied clusters, the majority of them adsorbing parallel to the surface with metal atoms attached to two surface oxygen atoms. The energetics of M1M2 + MgO(001) formation shows that the adsorption complexes are stable and benefit from metal-oxygen and metal-metal interaction. The chemisorption properties of Pd and Pt atoms in PdM2 and PtM2 dimers are studied using CO as a probe molecule. A linear relationship between the CO chemisorption and the d-band center position of the reacting atom in the dimer is observed, extending the d-band center model to the case of highly under-coordinated metal atoms supported by a non-conductive material.

Density functional theory simulations of complex catalytic materials in reactive environments: beyond the ideal surface at low coverage

Advanced DFT models of complex catalysts, such as amorphous silica–alumina and supported subnanometric platinum particles, bridge the gap between the ideal surface model and the industrial catalyst.

Does the MgO(100)-support facilitate the reaction of nitrogen and hydrogen molecules catalyzed by Zr2Pd2 clusters? A computational study

Reactions of the "naked" and MgO(100) supported Zr(2)Pd(2) cluster with nitrogen and four hydrogen molecules were studied at the density functional level using the periodic slab approach (VASP). It was shown that adsorption of the Zr(2)Pd(2) cluster on the MgO(100) surface does not change its gas-phase geometry and electronic structure significantly. In spite of this the N(2) coordination to the MgO(100)-supported Zr(2)Pd(2) cluster, I/MgO, is found to be almost 30 kcal/mol less favorable than for the "naked" one. The addition of the first H(2) molecule to the resulting II/MgO, that is, II/MgO + H(2) --> IV/MgO reaction, proceeds with a relatively small, 9.0 kcal/mol, barrier and is exothermic by 8.3 kcal/mol. The same reaction for the "naked" Zr(2)Pd(2) cluster requires a slightly larger barrier (10.1 kcal/mol) and is highly exothermic (by 23.3 kcal/mol). The interaction of the H(2) molecule with the intermediate IV/MgO (i.e., the second H(2) molecule addition to II/MgO) requires larger energy barrier, 23.3 kcal/mol vs 8.8 kcal/mol for the "naked" cluster, and is exothermic by 20.5 kcal/mol (vs 18.2 kcal/mol reported for the "naked" Zr(2)Pd(2) cluster). The addition of the H(2) molecule to VI/MgO and VI (i.e., the third H(2) molecule addition to II/MgO and II, respectively) requires similar barriers, 12.0 versus 16.8 kcal/mol, respectively, but is highly exothermic for the supported cluster compared to the "naked" one, 13.6 versus 0.1 kcal/mol. The addition of the fourth H(2) molecule occurs with almost twice larger barrier for the "naked" cluster compared to the adsorbed species, 30.7 versus 15.9 kcal/mol. Furthermore, this reaction step is endothermic (by 11.4 kcal/mol) for the gas-phase cluster but exothermic by 7.8 kcal/mol for the adsorbed cluster. Dissociation of the formed hydrazine molecule from the on-surface complex X/MgO and the "naked" complex X requires 19.1 and 26.3 kcal/mol, respectively. Thus, the Zr(2)Pd(2) adsorption on the MgO(100) surface facilitates its reaction with N(2) and four H(2) molecules, as well as formation of hydrazine from the hydrogen and nitrogen molecules. The reported differences in the reactivity of the "naked" and MgO adsorbed Zr(2)Pd(2) clusters were explained by analyzing the nature of the H(2) addition steps in these systems.

Density functional theory for transition metals and transition metal chemistry

We introduce density functional theory and review recent progress in its application to transition metal chemistry. Topics covered include local, meta, hybrid, hybrid meta, and range-separated functionals, band theory, software, validation tests, and applications to spin states, magnetic exchange coupling, spectra, structure, reactivity, and catalysis, including molecules, clusters, nanoparticles, surfaces, and solids.