Surface chemistry of porphyrins and phthalocyanines

This review covers the surface chemistry of porphyrins, phthalocyanines, their metal complexes, and related compounds, with particular focus on chemical reactions at solid/vacuum interfaces. Porphyrins are not only important biomolecules, they also find, together with the artificial phthalocyanines, numerous technological and scientific applications, which often involve surface and interface related aspects. After a brief summary of fundamental properties of these molecules in the context of surface science, the following topics will be discussed: (1) Aspects of geometric structure, including self-assembly, conformation, mobility and manipulation of the adsorbed molecules. (2) Surface-related changes of the electronic structure and the magnetic properties. (3) The role of the metal center in the surface chemical bond. (4) On-surface coordination reactions, such as direct metalation and coordination of axial ligands. (5) The influence of axial ligands on the surface chemical bond and the magnetic properties. (c) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.