Photolysis of CH3I on Cu(110) at 337 nm: Direct and charge-transfer photodissociation

Abstract

The photochemistry of methyl iodide adsorbed on Cu(110) surfaces has been studied using time-of-flight mass spectrometry, temperature programmed desorption, and retarding potential spectroscopy. The λ=337 nm photodissociation of CH3I adsorbed on clean and iodided Cu(110) is found to have an increased cross section (by ∼2 orders of magnitude) and altered dynamics from that of the gas phase at the same wavelength. On the clean Cu(110) surface both enhanced neutral photodissociation and charge-transfer photodissociation processes are observed, the latter being ascribed to hot photoelectrons generated in the substrate. On the Cu(110)–I surface, only enhanced neutral photodissociation is observed and the CH3I molecules are found to be orientationally ordered with a 20° tilt in the [11̄0] azimuth. Further evidence of altered neutral photodissociation dynamics is found in the observed I/I* branching ratio. In contrast to earlier studies of adsorbed CH3I, the branching ratio is found to favor the higher energy I* dissociation pathway as compared to the gas phase. The altered neutral photodissociation dynamics are ascribed to changes in the CH3I excited state potential energy surfaces, caused by interactions with the copper–iodine interface.