Watching molecular layers grow
21/02/2018, Lukáš Kormoš
We use STM and LEEM to see how molecular layers grow.
On the basis of local probe measurements we have shown that strong interaction of 4,4′-biphenyl dicarboxylic acid (BDA) with the step edges on Cu(001) results in the formation of densely packed molecular row, which causes the step edge passivation. This limits the BDA diffusion over the step edges and inhibits the attachment of additional BDA molecules preventing nucleation and growth of molecular islands on the step edges. Our results provide fundamental insight into the anomalous growth behavior exhibited by certain organic/inorganic systems, which allows the development of models enabling the control of the growth of organic heterointerfaces.