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Main Authors: Mortezapour, Behzad, Hamer, Sebastian, Herges, Rainer, Robles, Roberto, Berndt, Richard
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.09550
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author Mortezapour, Behzad
Hamer, Sebastian
Herges, Rainer
Robles, Roberto
Berndt, Richard
author_facet Mortezapour, Behzad
Hamer, Sebastian
Herges, Rainer
Robles, Roberto
Berndt, Richard
contents We investigated trioxatriangulenium functionalized with phenyl (phenyl-TOTA) on the (111) surfaces of Ag and Au using low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and density functional theory (DFT). On Ag(111), the molecules form hexagonal arrays, and on Au(111), honeycomb patterns are also observed. The orientations of the phenyl moieties are resolved on both substrates. On Ag(111), the orientations are parallel within a row and they differ by approximately $60^\circ$ between adjacent molecular rows, and STM images suggest dimerization of the molecules. DFT calculations for Ag(111) reveal that van der Waals interactions dominate this system. The optimized structure matches the experimental pattern, and the simulated STM images exhibit apparent dimerization. This dimerization results from an asymmetry of the phenyl wavefunction, which reflects intramolecular hydrogen bonding between the ligand and an oxygen atom within the triangulenium platform. The orientation of the phenyl moieties is explained by the interaction of each phenyl moiety with its triangulenium platform combined with the direct long-range interaction between phenyl moieties across molecules.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2510_09550
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Orientational Order of Phenyl Rotors on Triangular Platforms on Ag and Au(111)
Mortezapour, Behzad
Hamer, Sebastian
Herges, Rainer
Robles, Roberto
Berndt, Richard
Materials Science
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
We investigated trioxatriangulenium functionalized with phenyl (phenyl-TOTA) on the (111) surfaces of Ag and Au using low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and density functional theory (DFT). On Ag(111), the molecules form hexagonal arrays, and on Au(111), honeycomb patterns are also observed. The orientations of the phenyl moieties are resolved on both substrates. On Ag(111), the orientations are parallel within a row and they differ by approximately $60^\circ$ between adjacent molecular rows, and STM images suggest dimerization of the molecules. DFT calculations for Ag(111) reveal that van der Waals interactions dominate this system. The optimized structure matches the experimental pattern, and the simulated STM images exhibit apparent dimerization. This dimerization results from an asymmetry of the phenyl wavefunction, which reflects intramolecular hydrogen bonding between the ligand and an oxygen atom within the triangulenium platform. The orientation of the phenyl moieties is explained by the interaction of each phenyl moiety with its triangulenium platform combined with the direct long-range interaction between phenyl moieties across molecules.
title Orientational Order of Phenyl Rotors on Triangular Platforms on Ag and Au(111)
topic Materials Science
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.09550