What is it about?
What does a molecule do when it comes in contact with a very hot surface? We found an answer by studying the high-temperature behaviour of a copper complex on a silica substrate. The question is important because the decomposition of molecules on heated surfaces is a technologically strategic process at the basis of many applications. For instance, in Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD), the source compounds (the "precursors"), are initially brought into the vapour phase; then, they react on a surface heated at a temperature much higher than that of the carrier vapour phase. At these conditions, activation mechanisms strongly different from those typical of gas-phase or solution chemistry are possible, and novel materials may be synthesized.
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Why is it important?
We detected a new type of surface motion, defined as fast rolling diffusion on the hot surface (T=750 K). This molecular cart-wheeling motion (see movies) was combined with large oscillations of the metal-ligand bond lenghts: the molecule was therefore activated for the decomposition process. Indeed, this type of diffusion might also promote high-energy collisions between rolling molecules on the growth surface. These events could lead to precursor fragmentation and then formation of the first bonds between the metallic centers and the atoms of the growth surface.
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This page is a summary of: “Hot” Surface Activation of Molecular Complexes: Insight from Modeling Studies, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, February 2010, Wiley,
DOI: 10.1002/anie.200907312.
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Nature Chemistry's research highlight on this paper.
Molecular rolling motion (1)
This movie shows the adsorption and then the diffusion -via fast rolling motion - of the molecule on the hot surface (side view).
Molecular rolling motion (2)
Adsorption and rolliing motion of the Cu molecular complex (top view)
Molecular Rolling Poster
This poster illustrates the main results of the article
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Our article page in Academia (full text)
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Our article page in ResearchGate (full text).
Full Paper - Open Access
Author version of this paper (accepted manuscript) -Table of contents and frontspiece images
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