Surface technologies, molecular approach

For example, energy transfer in molecule-surface collisions is best studied in nom-eactive systems, such as the scattering and trapping of rare-gas atoms or simple molecules at metal surfaces. We follow a similar approach below, discussing the dynamics of the different elementary processes separately. The surface must also be simplified compared to technologically relevant systems. To develop a detailed understanding, we must know exactly what the surface looks like and of what it is composed. This requires the use of surface science tools (section B 1.19-26) to prepare very well-characterized, atomically clean and ordered substrates on which reactions can be studied under ultrahigh vacuum conditions. The most accurate and specific experiments also employ molecular beam teclmiques, discussed in section B2.3. 

SAMs are ordered molecular assembHes formed by the adsorption (qv) of an active surfactant on a soHd surface (Fig. 6). This simple process makes SAMs inherently manufacturable and thus technologically attractive for building supedattices and for surface engineering. The order in these two-dimensional systems is produced by a spontaneous chemical synthesis at the interface, as the system approaches equiHbrium. Although the area is not limited to long-chain molecules (112), SAMs of functionalized long-chain hydrocarbons are most frequently used as building blocks of supermolecular stmctures. 

Crystalline materials are commonly associated with purity, but recent demands lead to almost suprapure materials, and it is common to ask for an impurity profile. Crystallization epitomizes purification at the molecular level and the technology exploits the ability of a crystal surface to reject molecules that it does not recognize (Davey, 1994). This is essentially a supramolecular process. Two types of approaches are possible, viz. the use of eutectic and solid solutions. In the eutectic approach there is efficient rejection, whereas in solid solutions molecular level discrimination is difficult. 

The key effect of oxide supports on the catalytic activities of metal particles is exerted through the interface between oxides and metal particles. The key objective of this study is to develop synthesis methodologies for tailoring this interface. Here, an SSG approach was introduced to modify the surface of mesoporous silica materials with ultrathin films of titanium oxide so that the uniform deposition of gold precursors on ordered mesoporous silica materials by DP could be achieved without the constraint of the low lEP of silica. The surface sol-gel process was originally developed by Kunitake and coworkers.This novel technology enables molecular-scale control of film thickness over a large 2-D substrate area and can be viewed as a solution-based... 

Central to the understanding of surface-related phenomena has been the study of gas-surface reactions. A comprehensive understanding of these reactions has proven challenging because of the intrinsic many-body nature of surface dynamics. In terms of theoretical methods, this complexity often forces us either to treat complex realistic systems using approximate approaches, or to treat simple systems with realistic approaches. When one is interested in studying processes of technological importance, the latter route is often the most fruitful. One theoretical technique which embodies the many-body aspect of the dynamics of surface chemistry (albeit in a very approximate manner) is molecular dynamics computer simulation. 

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