Abstract
In this study we characterize the tautomerization of HPc on Cu(111) as a charge-carrier-induced reversible one-electron process. An analysis of the bias-dependent tautomerization rate finds an energy threshold that corresponds to the energy of the N-H stretching mode. By using the tautomerization of the molecule as a detector for charge carrier transport in the so-called molecular nanoprobe (MONA) technique, we provide evidence for an inhomogeneous coupling between the fourfold-symmetric molecule and sixfold-symmetric surface. We conclude the study by comparing the energy dependence of charge carrier transport on the Cu(111) to the Ag(111) surface. While the MONA technique is limited to the detection of hot-electron transport for Ag(111), our data reveal that the lower onset energy of the Cu surface state also allows for the detection of hot-hole transport. The influence of surface and bulk transport on the MONA technique is discussed.
- Received 7 June 2022
- Revised 4 August 2022
- Accepted 26 August 2022
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.4.043016
Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.
Published by the American Physical Society