Regensburg 2025 – wissenschaftliches Programm

Bereiche | Tage | Auswahl | Suche | Aktualisierungen | Downloads | Hilfe

O: Fachverband Oberflächenphysik

O 41: Heterogeneous Catalysis II

O 41.5: Vortrag

Dienstag, 18. März 2025, 15:00–15:15, H8

Functionalization of atomically defined Au step edges with N-heterocyclic carbenes for the electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide — •Philipp Wiesener¹, Duong Tran¹, Ankita Das², Ying Pan³, Nieves Lopez Salas³, Frank Glorius², and Harry Mönig¹ — ¹Physikalisches Institut, Universität Münster, Münster, Germany — ²Organisch-Chemisches Institut, Universität Münster, Münster, Germany — ³Institut für Chemie, Universität Paderborn, Paderborn, Germany

N-Heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) are versatile ligands allowing to tune the catalytic performance of metal surfaces and nanoparticles. In recent years, the understanding of molecular adsorption of a variety of NHC compounds on flat single crystalline surfaces has significantly advanced the knowledge about their extraordinary properties. In the present work, we use scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and non-contact atomic force microscopy (nc-AFM) to investigate the adsorption of various NHCs on a Au(788) surface, featuring a high density of atomically defined step edges. Our results reveal that NHC nucleation is significantly more stable at the step edges than on flat terraces. Correlating sub-molecular imaging techniques with voltammetry, we demonstrate the formation of a macroscopically defined and catalytically active nanostructure for the CO₂ reduction reaction. Our results spotlight the important role and opportunities of step edge functionalization by NHC compounds to design highly efficient and selective catalysts with defined active sites.

Keywords: N-Heterocyclic Carbenes (NHCs); STM; nc-AFM; Voltammetry; Heterogeneous Catalysis