Epitaxial growth and structure of cobalt ferrite thin films with large inversion parameter on Ag(001).

Cobalt ferrite ultrathin films with the inverse spinel structure are among the best candidates for spin filtering at room temperature. High-quality epitaxial CoFe2O4 films about 4 nm thick have been fabricated on Ag(001) following a three-step method: an ultrathin metallic CoFe2 alloy was first grown in coherent epitaxy on the substrate and then treated twice with O2, first at room temperature and then during annealing. The epitaxial orientation and the surface, interface and film structure were resolved using a combination of low-energy electron diffraction, scanning tunnelling microscopy, Auger electron spectroscopy and in situ grazing-incidence X-ray diffraction. A slight tetragonal distortion was observed, which should drive the easy magnetization axis in-plane due to the large magneto-elastic coupling of such a material. The so-called inversion parameter, i.e. the Co fraction occupying octahedral sites in the ferrite spinel structure, is a key element for its spin-dependent electronic gap. It was obtained through in situ resonant X-ray diffraction measurements collected at both the Co and Fe K edges. The data analysis was performed using FDMNES, an ab initio program already extensively used to simulate X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and shows that the Co ions are predominantly located on octahedral sites with an inversion parameter of 0.88 (5). Ex situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy gives an estimation in accordance with the values obtained through diffraction analysis.

Gas-induced selective re-orientation of Au-Cu nanoparticles on TiO2 (110).

Au-Cu bimetallic nanoparticles (NPs) grown on TiO2(110) have been followed in situ using grazing incidence X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoemission spectroscopy from their synthesis to their exposure to a CO/O2 mixture at low pressure (P < 10-5 mbar) and at different temperatures (300 K-470 K). As-prepared samples are composed of two types of alloyed NPs: randomly oriented and epitaxial NPs. Whereas the introduction of CO has no effect on the structure of the NPs, an O2 introduction triggers a Cu surface segregation phenomenon resulting in the formation of a Cu2O shell reducible by annealing the sample over 430 K. A selective re-orientation of the nanoparticles, induced by the exposure to a CO/O2 mixture, is observed where the randomly oriented NPs take advantage of the mobility induced by the Cu segregation to re-orient their Au-rich core relatively to the TiO2(110) substrate following specifically the orientation ((111)NPs//(110)TiO2) when others epitaxial relationships were observed on the as-prepared sample.

Simulation of Surface Resonant X-ray Diffraction.

We present an ab initio numerical tool to simulate surface resonant X-ray diffraction experiments. The crystal truncation rods and the spectra around a given X-ray absorption edge are calculated at any position of the reciprocal space. Density functional theory is used to determine the resonant scattering factor of an atom within its local environment and to calculate the diffraction peak intensities for surfaces covered with a thin film or with one or several adsorbed layers. Besides the sample geometry, the collected data also depend on several parameters, such as beam polarization and incidence and exit angles. In order to account for these factors, a numerical diffractometer mimicking the experimental operation modes has been created. Finally two case studies are presented in order to compare our simulations with experimental spectra: (i) a magnetite thin film deposited on a silver substrate and (ii) an electrochemical interface consisting of bromine atoms adsorbed on copper.

Operando atomic structure and active sites of TiO2(110)-supported gold nanoparticles during carbon monoxide oxidation.

It is well known that gold nanoparticles supported on TiO2 act as a catalyst for CO oxidation, even below room temperature. Despite extensive studies, the origin of this catalytic activity remains under debate. Indeed, when the particle size decreases, many changes may occur; thus modifying the nanoparticles' electronic properties and consequently their catalytic performances. Thanks to a state-of-the-art home-developed setup, model catalysts can be prepared in ultra-high vacuum and their morphology then studied in operando conditions by Grazing Incidence Small Angle X-ray Scattering, as well as their atomic structure by Grazing Incidence X-ray Diffraction as a function of their catalytic activity. We previously reported on the existence of a catalytic activity maximum observed for three-dimensional gold nanoparticles with a diameter of 2-3 nm and a height of 6-7 atomic planes. In the present work we correlate this size dependence of the catalytic activity to the nanoparticles' atomic structure. We show that even when their size decreases below the optimum diameter, the gold nanoparticles keep the face-centered cubic structure characteristic of bulk gold. Nevertheless, for these smallest nanoparticles, the lattice parameter presents anisotropic strains with a larger contraction in the direction perpendicular to the surface. Moreover a careful analysis of the atomic-scale morphology around the catalytic activity maximum tends to evidence the role of sites with a specific geometry at the interface between the nanoparticles and the substrate. This argues for models where atoms at the interface periphery act as catalytically active sites for carbon monoxide oxidation.