CHARACTERIZATION OF THE CU(110)-(2X1)O RECONSTRUCTION BY MEANS OF MOLECULAR ADSORPTION

The binding energies and the structural properties of atoms and molecu les adsorbed on the Cu(110)-(2 x 1)O surface are intimately related to the precise geometry of the surface reconstruction. In particular, th e adsorbate-substrate interaction strongly depends on the characterist ic parameters of the surface reconstruction, namely, the relaxation be tween the first two Cu planes, the oxygen position above the surface, and the ionic nature of the Cu-O bond. We propose a reliable estimate of these parameters by comparing semiempirical interaction potential c alculations to recent experimental results on the adsorption propertie s of Xe and N-2 monolayers on Cu(110)-(2 x 1)O. [S0163-1829(98)07639-5 ].