Surface bonding and dynamical behavior of the CH3SH molecule on Au(111)

The chemisorption of the undissociated CH3SH molecule on the Au(111) surface has been studied at 5 K using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The molecule was found to adsorb on atop An sites on the defect-free surface. CH3SH undergoes hindered rotation about the Au-S bond on the defect-free surface which is seen in STM as a time-averaged 6-fold pattern. The pattern suggests that the potential minima directions occur for the rotating molecule at the six hollow sites surrounding the atop adsorption site. The barrier for rotation, obtained by DFT calculations, is similar to 0.1 kcal center dot mol(-1). At low coverages, preferential adsorption occurs at defect sites in the surface, namely, the herringbone elbows and random atomic step sites. Molecules adsorbed on these sites do not exhibit rotational freedom.