Direct pathway for sticking/desorption of H2 on Si(100)

Tuning patterning conditions by co-adsorption of gases: Br2 and H2 on Si(001)

We have studied the co-adsorption of Br2 and H2 on Si(001), and obtained co-adsorption energies and the surface phase diagram as a function of the chemical potential and pressure of the two gases. To do this, we have used density functional theory calculations in combination with ab initio atomistic thermodynamics. Over large ranges of bromine and hydrogen chemical potentials, the favored configuration is found to be either one with only Br atoms adsorbed on the surface, at full coverage, in a (3 × 2) pattern, or a fully H-covered surface in a (2 × 1) structure. However, we also find regions of the phase diagram where there are configurations with either only Br atoms, or Br and H atoms, arranged in a two-atom-wide checkerboard pattern with a (4 × 2) surface unit cell. Most interestingly, we find that by co-adsorbing with H2, we bring this pattern into a region of the phase diagram corresponding to pressures that are significantly higher than those where it is observed with Br2 alone. We also find small regions of the phase diagram with several other interesting patterns.

On the structure of Si(100) surface: importance of higher order correlations for buckled dimer

We revisit a dangling theoretical question of whether the surface reconstruction of the Si(100) surface would energetically favor the symmetric or buckled dimers on the intrinsic potential energy surfaces at 0 K. This seemingly simple question is still unanswered definitively since all existing density functional based calculations predict the dimers to be buckled, while most wavefunction based correlated treatments prefer the symmetric configurations. Here, we use the doubly hybrid density functional (DHDF) geometry optimizations, in particular, XYGJ-OS, complete active space self-consistent field theory, multi-reference perturbation theory, multi-reference configuration interaction (MRCI), MRCI with the Davidson correction (MRCI + Q), multi-reference average quadratic CC (MRAQCC), and multi-reference average coupled pair functional (MRACPF) methods to address this question. The symmetric dimers are still shown to be lower in energy than the buckled dimers when using the CASPT2 method on the DHDF optimized geometries, consistent with the previous results using B3LYP geometries [Y. Jung, Y. Shao, M. S. Gordon, D. J. Doren, and M. Head-Gordon, J. Chem. Phys. 119, 10917 (2003)]. Interestingly, however, the MRCI + Q, MRAQCC, and MRACPF results (which give a more refined description of electron correlation effects) suggest that the buckled dimer is marginally more stable than its symmetric counterpart. The present study underlines the significance of having an accurate description of the electron-electron correlation as well as proper multi-reference wave functions when exploring the extremely delicate potential energy surfaces of the reconstructed Si(100) surface.

Evidence for hydrogen desorption through both interdimer and intradimer paths from Si(100)-(2 x 1)

Despite intensive work there are still controversial issues about desorption and adsorption of hydrogen on Si(100)-(2 x 1). In particular, the relative importance of the various interdimer- and intradimer-desorption paths is not clear. Nanosecond-pulse-laser desorption data have been used to argue that the 4H interdimer path is important, while data from thermal-desorption time-of-flight measurements suggest a large translationally hot contribution which cannot arise from the 4H interdimer path. The observation of a translationally hot desorption fraction at low to medium coverage can be accounted for by including the 2H interdimer path in quantum dynamical calculations. In this paper we investigate this issue further and present evidence that supports the inclusion of the intradimer path. Specifically, our results show that the intradimer and 3H interdimer paths provide the major contributions to the translationally hot fraction in the desorbate. Our conclusions are based on density-functional calculations of hydrogen translational excitation, mean-field analysis of thermal-desorption experiments over a range of ramp rate, and Monte Carlo simulations of nanosecond-pulse-laser experiments.

Theoretical study of vibration-phonon coupling of H adsorbed on a Si(100) surface

In this paper a perturbation-theory study of vibrational lifetimes for the bending and stretching modes of hydrogen adsorbed on a Si(100) surface is presented. The hydrogen-silicon interaction is treated with a semiempirical bond-order potential. Calculations are performed for H-Si clusters of different sizes. The finite lifetime is due to vibration-phonon coupling, which is assumed to be linear or bilinear in the phonon and nonlinear in the H-Si stretching and bending modes. Lifetimes and vibrational transition rates are evaluated with one- and two-phonon processes taken into account. Temperature effects are also discussed. In agreement with the experiment and previous theoretical treatment it is found that the H-Si (upsilon(s) = 1) stretching vibration decays on a nanosecond timescale, whereas for the H-Si (upsilon(b) = 1) bending mode a picosecond decay is predicted. For higher-excited vibrations, simple scaling laws are found if the excitation energies are not too large. The relaxation mechanisms for the excited H-Si stretching and the H-Si bending modes are analyzed in detail.

Internal pressure and surface tension of bare and hydrogen coated silicon nanoparticles

We present a study of internal pressure and surface tension of bare and hydrogen coated silicon nanoparticles of 2-10 nm diameter as a function of temperature, using molecular dynamics simulations employing a reparametrized Kohen-Tully-Stillinger interatomic potential. The internal pressure was found to increase with decreasing particle size but the density was found to be independent of the particle size. We showed that for covalent bond structures, changes in surface curvature and the associated surface forces were not sufficient to significantly change bond lengths and angles. Thus, the surface tension was also found to be independent of the particle size. Surface tension was found to decrease with increasing particle temperature while the internal pressure did not vary with temperature. The presence of hydrogen on the surface of a particle significantly reduces surface tension (e.g., drops from 0.83 J/m(2) to 0.42 J/m(2) at 1500 K). The computed pressure of bare and coated particles was found to follow the classical Laplace-Young equation.

Quantum Monte Carlo calculations of H2 dissociation on Si(001)

The dissociative adsorption of H2 on the Si(001) surface is theoretically investigated for several reaction pathways using quantum Monte Carlo methods. Our reaction energies and barriers are at large variance with those obtained with commonly used approximate exchange-correlation density functionals. Our results for adsorption support recent experimental findings, while, for desorption, the calculations give barriers in excess of the presently accepted experimental value, pinpointing the role of coverage effects and desorption from steps.

Translational heating of D(2) molecules thermally desorbed from Si(100) and Ge(100) surfaces

The translational energies of D(2) molecules thermally desorbed from the Si(100) and Ge(100) surfaces under a heating rate of 6 K/s have been measured. In contrast to the previous laser desorption study, results show a considerable translational heating; the observed translational temperature is about 3 times higher than the desorption temperature for both surfaces. This fact indicates that energy barriers for adsorption are present even in the desorption pathway. Detailed balance is applicable to the adsorption and desorption dynamics of hydrogen on the Si(100) surface.

Interaction of H2 with Si(001)-(2 x 1): solution of the barrier puzzle

The sticking probability of H2 on Si(001) is immeasurably small at room temperature, indicating the presence of a large energy barrier to adsorption. Surprisingly, the final state energy distributions of H2 molecules desorbing from Si(001) show no signs of having traversed such a barrier, in apparent contradiction with microscopic reversibility. Here we report experimental and theoretical evidence resolving this long-standing puzzle. Adsorption and desorption proceeding along two distinct, microscopically reversible pathways can explain all observations.

AB INITIO DYNAMICS OF SURFACE CHEMISTRY

▪ Abstract  We review the young field of ab initio molecular dynamics applied to molecule-surface reactions. The techniques of ab initio molecular dynamics include methods that use an analytic potential energy function fit to ab initio data and those that are fully ab initio. In this review, we focus on the insights provided by ab initio–based molecular dynamics that are currently unavailable from experimental studies and discuss current techniques and limitations. As an example of how different aspects of a problem can be tackled with state-of-the-art theoretical tools, we consider the well-studied case of H2 desorption and adsorption from the Si(100)-2 × 1 surface.