X-ray diffraction and computation yield the structure of alkanethiols on gold(111).

The structure of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of long-chain alkyl sulfides on gold(111) has been resolved by density functional theory-based molecular dynamics simulations and grazing incidence x-ray diffraction for hexanethiol and methylthiol. The analysis of molecular dynamics trajectories and the relative energies of possible SAM structures suggest a competition between SAM ordering, driven by the lateral van der Waals interaction between alkyl chains, and disordering of interfacial Au atoms, driven by the sulfur-gold interaction. We found that the sulfur atoms of the molecules bind at two distinct surface sites, and that the first gold surface layer contains gold atom vacancies (which are partially redistributed over different sites) as well as gold adatoms that are laterally bound to two sulfur atoms.

Far-infrared absorption of water clusters by first-principles molecular dynamics.

Based on first-principle molecular dynamic simulations, we calculate the far-infrared spectra of small water clusters (H(2)O)(n) (n = 2, 4, 6) at frequencies below 1000 cm(-1) and at 80 K and at atmospheric temperature (T>200 K). We find that cluster size and temperature affect the spectra significantly. The effect of the cluster size is similar to the one reported for confined water. Temperature changes not only the shape of the spectra but also the total strength of the absorption, a consequence of the complete anharmonic nature of the classical dynamics at high temperature. In particular, we find that in the frequency region up to 320 cm(-1), the absorption strength per molecule of the water dimer at 220 K is significantly larger than that of bulk liquid water, while tetramer and hexamer show bulklike strengths. However, the absorption strength of the dimer throughout the far-infrared region is too small to explain the measured vapor absorption continuum, which must therefore be dominated by other mechanisms.

Finite-temperature effects on the stability and infrared spectra of HCl(H2O)6 clusters.

Theoretical studies of the interaction of HCl with small water clusters have so far neglected the effect of temperature, which ranges from a few tens of kelvin in cluster experiments, up to about 250 K in typical atmospheric conditions. We study the dynamical behavior of a selected set of HCl(H2O)6 clusters, representative of undissociated and dissociated configurations, by means of DFT-based first principles molecular dynamics. We find that the thermodynamcal stability of different configurations can be affected by temperature. We also present the infrared spectra of dissociated and undissociated configurations at 200 K and discuss the origin of the spectral features.

Competition of charge-density waves and superconductivity in sulfur.

A one-dimensional charge-density wave (CDW) instability is shown to be responsible for the formation of the incommensurate modulation of the atomic lattice in the high-pressure phase of sulfur. The coexistence of, and competition between, the CDW and the superconducting state leads to the previously observed increase of T{c} up to 17 K, which we attribute to the suppression of the CDW instability, the same phenomenology found in doped layered dichalcogenides.

Structure of a CH3S monolayer on Au(111) solved by the interplay between molecular dynamics calculations and diffraction measurements.

We have investigated the controversy surrounding the (sqrt[3] x sqrt[3]) R30 degrees structure of self-assembled monolayers of methylthiolate on Au(111) by first principles molecular dynamics simulations, energy and angle resolved photoelectron diffraction, and grazing incidence x-ray diffraction. Our simulations find a dynamic equilibrium between bridge site adsorption and a novel structure where 2 CH3S radicals are bound to an Au adatom that has been lifted from the gold substrate. As a result, the interface is characterized by a large atomic roughness with both adatoms and vacancies. This result is confirmed by extensive photoelectron and grazing incidence x-ray diffraction measurements.

Interfacial electrostatics of self-assembled monolayers of alkane thiolates on Au(111): work function modification and molecular level alignments.

We have isolated at T < 150 K a weakly adsorbed dimethyl disulfide (DMDS) layer on Au(111) and studied how the vibrational states, S core hole level shifts, valence band photoemission, and work function measurements evolve upon transforming this system into chemisorbed methylthiolate (MT) self-assembled monolayers (SAM) by heating above 200 K. By combining these observations with detailed theoretical electronic structure simulations, at the density functional level, we have been able to obtain a detailed picture of the electronic interactions at the interface between Au and adsorbed thiolates and disulfides. All of our measurements may be interpreted with a simple model where MT is bound to the Au surface with negligible charge transfer. Interfacial dipoles arising from Pauli repulsion between molecule and metal surface electrons are present for the weakly adsorbed DMDS layer but not for the chemisorbed species. Instead, for the chemisorbed species, interfacial dipoles are exclusively controlled by the molecular dipole, its interaction with the dipoles on neighboring molecules, and its orientation to the surface. The ramifications of these results for alignment of molecular levels and interfacial properties of this class of materials are discussed.

Metal work-function changes induced by organic adsorbates: a combined experimental and theoretical study.

The role of molecular dipole moment, charge transfer, and Pauli repulsion in determining the work-function change (Deltaphi) at organic-metal interfaces has been elucidated by a combined experimental and theoretical study of (CH(3)S)(2)/Au(111) and CH(3)S/Au(111). Comparison between experiment and theory allows us to determine the origin of the interface dipole layer for both phases. For CH(3)S/Au(111), Deltaphi can be ascribed almost entirely to the dipole moment of the CH(3)S layer. For (CH(3)S)(2)/Au(111), a Pauli repulsion mechanism occurs. The implications of these results on the interpretation of Deltaphi in the presence of strongly and weakly adsorbed molecules is discussed.

Trapping of excitons at chemical defects in polyethylene.

In a previous paper we studied an injected electron-hole pair in crystalline polyethylene (PE) and found that the exciton becomes weakly self-trapped in a narrow interchain pocket comprised between two gauche defects. Despite the large energy stored in the trapped excitation, there did not appear to be a direct nonradiative channel for electron-hole recombination. Actual polyethylene systems of practical use are, however, neither crystalline nor pure. To understand the fate of an electron-hole pair in the impure case, we studied by ab initio simulations the evolution of an exciton trapped on three common chemical defects found in polyethylene: a grafted carbonyl (C=O); an intrachain vinyl group (C=C); a grafted carboxyl (COOH). Ab initio simulations lead to predict three different outcomes: trapping, nonradiative recombination, and homolitic bond-breaking, respectively. This suggests that extrinsic self-trapping of electron-hole pairs over chemical defects inside the quasicrystalline fraction of PE could be relevant for electrical damage in high-voltage cables.

Disproportionation phenomena on free and strained Sn/Ge(111) and Sn/Si(111) surfaces.

Distortions of the sqrt[3]x sqrt[3] Sn/Ge(111) and Sn/Si(111) surfaces are shown to reflect a disproportionation of an integer pseudocharge, Q, related to the surface band occupancy. A novel understanding of the (3 x 3)-1U ("1 up, 2 down") and 2U ("2 up, 1 down") distortions of Sn/Ge(111) is obtained by a theoretical study of the phase diagram under strain. Positive strain keeps the unstrained value Q=3 but removes distortions. Negative strain attracts pseudocharge from the valence band causing first a (3 x 3)-2U distortion (Q=4) on both Sn/Ge and Sn/Si, and eventually a (sqrt[3] x sqrt[3])-3U ("all up") state with Q=6. The possibility of a fluctuating phase in unstrained Sn/Si(111) is discussed.

Surface states and negative electron affinity in polyethylene.

First-principles calculations are used to investigate the electronic properties of the surfaces of polyethylene. The calculations support the experimental evidence of a negative electron affinity, with calculated values of -0.17 eV and -0.10 eV for surfaces with chains perpendicular and parallel to the surface normal, respectively. Both surfaces exhibit a surface state with binding energy -1.2 +/- 0.5 eV with respect to the bulk polyethylene conduction band minimum. Implications of these findings on spectroscopy, as well as on the transport and aging properties of polyethylene for high-voltage applications, are discussed.

Physics of iron at Earth's core conditions

The bulk properties of iron at the pressure and temperature conditions of Earth's core were determined by a method that combines first-principles and classical molecular dynamic simulations. The theory indicates that (i) the iron melting temperature at inner-core boundary (ICB) pressure (330 gigapascals) is 5400 (+/-400) kelvin; (ii) liquid iron at ICB conditions is about 6% denser than Earth's outer core; and (iii) the shear modulus of solid iron close to its melting line is 140 gigapascals, consistent with the seismic value for the inner core. These results reconcile melting temperature estimates based on sound velocity shock wave data with those based on diamond anvil cell experiments.

Pressure-induced solid carbonates from molecular CO2 by computer simulation

A combination of ab initio molecular dynamic simulations and fully relaxed total energy calculations is used to predict that molecular CO2 should transform to nonmolecular carbonate phases based on CO4 tetrahedra at pressures in the range of 35 to 60 gigapascals. The simulation suggests a variety of competing phases, with a more facile transformation of the molecular phase at high temperatures. Thermodynamically, the most stable carbonate phase at high pressure is predicted to be isostructural to SiO2 alpha-quartz (low quartz). A class of carbonates, involving special arrangements of CO4 tetrahedra, is found to be more stable than all the other silica-like polymorphs.

Superionic and metallic states of water and ammonia at giant planet conditions.

The phase diagrams of water and ammonia were determined by constant pressure ab initio molecular dynamic simulations at pressures (30 to 300 gigapascal) and temperatures (300 to 7000 kelvin) of relevance for the middle ice layers of the giant planets Neptune and Uranus. Along the planetary isentrope water and ammonia behave as fully dissociated ionic, electronically insulating fluid phases, which turn metallic at temperatures exceeding 7000 kelvin for water and 5500 kelvin for ammonia. At lower temperatures, the phase diagrams of water and ammonia exhibit a superionic solid phase between the solid and the ionic liquid. These simulations improve our understanding of the properties of the middle ice layers of Neptune and Uranus.

Dissociation of methane into hydrocarbons at extreme (planetary) pressure and temperature.

Constant-pressure, first-principles molecular dynamic simulations were used to investigate the behavior of methane at high pressure and temperature. Contrary to the current interpretation of shock-wave experiments, the simulations suggest that, below 100 gigapascals, methane dissociates into a mixture of hydrocarbons, and it separates into hydrogen and carbon only above 300 gigapascals. The simulation conditions (100 to 300 gigapascals; 4000 to 5000 kelvin) were chosen to follow the isentrope in the middle ice layers of Neptune and Uranus. Implications on the physics of these planets are discussed.