Soft landing of mass-selected ions onto surfaces is a powerful approach for the highly-controlled preparation of novel materials. Coupled with analysis by in situ secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS), soft landing provides unprecedented insights into the interactions of well-defined species with surfaces.
Soft landing of mass-selected ions onto surfaces is a powerful approach for the highly-controlled preparation of materials that are inaccessible using conventional synthesis techniques. Coupling soft landing with in situ characterization using secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS) enables analysis of well-defined surfaces under clean vacuum conditions. The capabilities of three soft-landing instruments constructed in our laboratory are illustrated for the representative system of surface-bound organometallics prepared by soft landing of mass-selected ruthenium tris(bipyridine) dications, [Ru(bpy)3]2+ (bpy = bipyridine), onto carboxylic acid terminated self-assembled monolayer surfaces on gold (COOH-SAMs). In situ time-of-flight (TOF)-SIMS provides insight into the reactivity of the soft-landed ions. In addition, the kinetics of charge reduction, neutralization and desorption occurring on the COOH-SAM both during and after ion soft landing are studied using in situ Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR)-SIMS measurements. In situ IRRAS experiments provide insight into how the structure of organic ligands surrounding metal centers is perturbed through immobilization of organometallic ions on COOH-SAM surfaces by soft landing. Collectively, the three instruments provide complementary information about the chemical composition, reactivity and structure of well-defined species supported on surfaces.
Soft landing of mass-selected ions onto surfaces remains a subject of current research interest due to the demonstrated capabilities of the technique for the highly-controlled preparation of novel materials1-6. Recent efforts have indicated potential future applications of soft landing of mass-selected ions in the preparation of peptide and protein arrays for use in high-throughput biological screening7,8, separation of proteins and conformational enrichment of peptides9-12, covalent attachment of peptides to surfaces9,10,13,14, chiral enrichment of organic compounds15, electrochemical characterization of specific redox-active proteins16-18, production of thin molecular films19,20, processing of macromolecules such as graphene21 and preparation of model catalyst systems through soft landing of ionic clusters22-39, nanoparticles40-48 and organometallic complexes onto support materials19,49-56. The concept of modifying surfaces through soft landing of polyatomic ions was initially proposed by Cooks and co-workers in 197757. In the subsequent years a wide range of instrumental approaches have been developed for the controlled deposition of mass-selected ions from the gas-phase onto surfaces1,4,5. Ions have been produced through processes such as electrospray ionization (ESI)10,58,59, matrix- assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI)21, electron impact ionization (EI)60,61, pulsed arc discharge62, inert gas condensation36,63, magnetron sputtering64,65, and laser vaporization25,66,67. Mass selection of gas-phase ions prior to soft landing has been achieved principally employing quadrupole mass filters58,68,69, magnetic deflection devices70, and linear ion trap instruments8,59. A particularly notable advance in ion soft landing methodology occurred recently with the successful implementation of ambient ion soft- and reactive landing by Cooks and co-workers71,72. Using these various ionization and mass-selection techniques, the interactions of hyperthermal (<100 eV) polyatomic ions with surfaces have been studied in order to better understand the factors influencing the efficiency of ion soft landing and the competing processes of reactive and unreactive scattering as well as surface induced dissociation4,73-75.
The preparation of well-defined model catalysts for research purposes has been a particularly fruitful application of soft landing of mass-selected ions25,34,35,56,76-81. In the size range of nanoscale clusters, where physical and chemical behavior does not scale linearly with cluster size, it has been demonstrated that the addition or removal of single atoms to or from clusters may drastically influence their chemical reactivity82-84. This nanoscale phenomenon, which results from quantum confinement, was demonstrated convincingly by Heiz and co-workers85 for a model catalyst consisting of soft landed clusters of eight gold atoms (Au8) supported on a defect-rich MgO surface. Several additional studies have provided evidence of the size-dependent reactivity of clusters supported on surfaces34,77,86,87. Moreover, high resolution electron microscopy images indicate that clusters containing as few as ten88 and fifty five89 atoms may be largely responsible for the superior activity of bulk-synthesized gold catalysts supported on iron oxides. Employing soft landing of mass-selected ions, it is possible to prepare stable arrays of size-selected clusters and nanoparticles that do not diffuse and agglomerate into larger structures on the surface of support materials90-92. These previous studies indicate that with continuing development, soft landing of mass-selected clusters and nanoparticles may become a versatile technique for the creation of highly active heterogeneous catalysts that exploit the emergent behavior of large numbers of identical clusters and nanoparticles in extended arrays on surfaces. These extremely well-defined systems may be used for research purposes to understand how critical parameters such as cluster size, morphology, elemental composition and surface coverage influence catalytic activity, selectivity and durability.
Organometallic complexes that are typically used in the solution-phase as homogeneous catalysts also may be immobilized on surfaces through soft landing of mass-selected ions56,80,81. Attaching ionic metal-ligand complexes to solid supports to produce hybrid organic-inorganic materials is currently an active area of research in the catalysis and surface science communities93. The overall goal is to obtain the high selectivity toward a desired product of solution-phase metal-ligand complexes while facilitating an easier separation of products from catalysts and reactants remaining in solution. In this manner, surface immobilized organometallic complexes reap the benefits of both homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts. Through selection of an appropriate substrate it is possible to maintain or even enhance the organic ligand environment around the active metal center while also achieving strong surface immobilization94. Self-assembled monolayer surfaces (SAMs) on gold may be terminated with a number of different functional groups and are, therefore, ideal systems to investigate the feasibility of tethering organometallic complexes to surfaces through soft landing of mass-selected ions95. Furthermore, ionization methods such as atmospheric pressure thermal desorption ionization (APTDI) have been demonstrated previously to yield gas-phase mixed-metal inorganic complexes that are not accessible through synthesis in solution96. In a similar vein, non-thermal kinetically-limited synthesis and ionization techniques such as magnetron sputtering65, gas aggregation63 and laser vaporization66 also may be coupled with ion soft landing instrumentation to provide a versatile route to novel inorganic clusters and nanoparticles supported on surfaces.
In order to evolve soft landing of mass-selected ions into a mature technology for the preparation of materials, it is critical that informative analytical methods be coupled with soft landing instrumentation to probe the chemical and physical properties of surfaces before, during and after deposition of ions. To date, a multitude of techniques have been applied for this purpose including secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS)19,97-100, temperature programmed desorption and reaction50,52, laser desorption and ionization101, pulsed molecular beam reaction102, infrared spectroscopy (FTIR and Raman)98,103,104, surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy103,105, cavity ringdown spectroscopy106, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy35,107, scanning tunneling microscopy33,108-111, atomic force microscopy112-114, and transmission electron microscopy39. However, to most accurately characterize surfaces prepared or modified by ion soft landing, it is crucial that the analysis be performed in situ without exposure of the substrate to the environment in the laboratory. Previous analyses conducted in situ have provided insight into phenomena such as the reduction of ionic charge of soft landed ions over time37,38,115,116, the desorption of soft landed ions from surfaces52, the efficiency and kinetic energy dependence of ion reactive landing14,81, and the influence of size on the catalytic activity of clusters and nanoparticles deposited onto surfaces117. By way of example, in our laboratory, we have systematically studied the charge reduction kinetics of protonated peptides on the surfaces of different SAMs3. These experiments were performed with a unique soft landing instrument coupled to a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance secondary ion mass spectrometer (FT-ICR-SIMS) that enables in situ analysis of surfaces both during and after soft landing of ions97. To expand upon these analytical capabilities, another instrument was constructed that allows in situ characterization of soft landed ions on surfaces using IRRAS104. This surface-sensitive infrared technique enables bond formation and destruction processes as well as conformational changes in complex ions and surface layers to be monitored in real time both during and after soft landing12. For instance, using IRRAS it was demonstrated that ion soft landing may be used to covalently immobilize mass-selected peptides on N-hydroxysuccinimidyl ester functionalized SAMs13,14.
Herein, we illustrate the capabilities of three unique custom-built instruments located at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory that are designed for in situ TOF-SIMS, FT-ICR-SIMS, and IRRAS analysis of substrates produced through soft landing of mass-selected ions onto surfaces. As a representative system, we present results for soft landing of mass-selected organometallic ruthenium tris(bipyridine) dications [Ru(bpy)3]2+ onto carboxylic acid terminated SAMs (COOH-SAMs) to prepare immobilized organometallic complexes. It is shown that in situ TOF-SIMS offers the advantages of extremely high sensitivity and large overall dynamic range which facilitates identification of low abundance species including reactive intermediates that may only be present for short periods of time on the surfaces. TOF-SIMS also provides insight into how the removal of a ligand from an organometallic ion in the gas-phase, prior to soft landing, influences its efficiency toward immobilization on surfaces and its chemical reactivity towards gaseous molecules. Complementary characterization using in situ FT-ICR-SIMS provides insights into the charge reduction, neutralization and desorption kinetics of the doubly charged ions on the surface while in situ IRRAS probes the structure of the organic ligands surrounding the charged metal centers, which may influence the electronic properties and reactivity of the immobilized ions. Collectively, we illustrate how soft landing of mass-selected ions combined with in situ analysis by SIMS and IRRAS provides insight into the interactions between well-defined species and surfaces which have implications for a broad range of scientific endeavors.
1. Preparation of COOH-SAM Surfaces on Gold for Soft Landing of Mass-selected Ions
2. Soft Landing of Mass-selected Ru(bpy)32+ onto COOH-SAM Surfaces
3. Analysis by In Situ TOF-SIMS Before and After Exposure to Reactive Gases
4. Analysis by In Situ FT-ICR-SIMS During and After Soft Landing
5. Analysis by In Situ IRRAS During and After Soft Landing
1. Investigating the Reactivity of Ru(bpy)32+ on COOH-SAMs Using In Situ TOF-SIMS
Soft landing of mass-selected organometallic ions onto functionalized SAMs is first illustrated using in situ TOF-SIMS to provide maximum sensitivity toward detection of adducts formed between the deposited ions and the individual molecules in the monolayers as well as any products of chemical reactions following exposure of the surfaces to reactive gases. The doubly charged Ru(bpy)32+ ion originates from dissolution and dissociation of solid-phase tris(2,2'-bipyridyl)dichlororuthenium(II) hexahydrate crystals in methanol. The Ru(bpy)32+ m/z = 285 dication selected for the representative soft landing experiments described herein is the most abundant ion generated from electrospray ionization of the solution. Undercoordinated Ru(bpy)22+ ions are prepared by fragmentation of one bipyridine ligand from each fully ligated Ru(bpy)32+ ion. This is induced by gas-phase collision-induced-dissociation in the first quadrupole region of the soft landing instrument shown schematically in Figure 1. An ion current of around 100 pA and 60 pA is directed at the COOH-SAM surfaces for 30 and 45 min for Ru(bpy)32+ and Ru(bpy)22+, respectively, corresponding to a total delivery of 5 x 1011 mass-selected ions to a circular spot approximately 3 mm in diameter. The kinetic energy of the ions approaching the surface is determined by adjusting the potentials applied to the second collision quadrupole (see Figure 1) and the surface. The kinetic energy is set at around 10 eV per charge for all of the soft landing experiments conducted using the in situ TOF-SIMS apparatus.
Following soft landing of 5 x 1011 intact Ru(bpy)32+ ions onto the surface of the COOH-SAM, a number of new peaks that are not present prior to deposition become prominent in the TOF-SIMS spectra. Isotopic envelopes corresponding to intact doubly charged Ru(bpy)32+ m/z = 285 and singly charged Ru(bpy)3+ m/z = 570 are observed following soft landing of Ru(bpy)32+ onto the COOH-SAM surface. The relative abundance of these species suggests that reduction of the ionic charge of Ru(bpy)32+ to Ru(bpy)3+ takes place rapidly on the surface of the COOH-SAM. Another isotopic envelope is present at m/z = 414 which corresponds to the fragment Ru(bpy)2+. This singly charged ion, which results from loss of one bipyridine ligand from singly charged Ru(bpy)3+, is likely formed through dissociation of Ru(bpy)3+ during analysis by TOF-SIMS. In contrast, the TOF-SIMS spectrum obtained following soft landing of the fragment Ru(bpy)22+ lacks any of the characteristic peaks related to the intact complex (i.e. Ru(bpy)32+ or Ru(bpy)3+). Most importantly, a peak corresponding to a Ru(bpy)2-thiol+ adduct at m/z = 700 is observed which indicates very strong binding between the undercoordinated ion and the monolayer surface. The peaks corresponding to this species are featured prominently in Figure 2a.
After soft landing, the COOH-SAM surfaces are exposed to controlled pressures of either O2 or C2H4 in the deposition region of the instrument to examine the chemical reactivity of the immobilized organometallic complexes. Following gas exposure, the surfaces are analyzed again by in situ TOF-SIMS. Presented in Figures 2b and 2c are the in situ TOF-SIMS spectra obtained directly following exposure of the COOH-SAM surfaces containing soft landed Ru(bpy)32+ and Ru(bpy)22+ ions to O2 and C2H4. As discussed in the preceding paragraph, following soft landing of Ru(bpy)2/32+ onto COOH-SAM surfaces an isotopic distribution corresponding to an electrostatic adduct formed between the ions and the surface molecules is observed. After exposure of the surface to 10-4 Torr of O2 for 30 min the TOF-SIMS spectra indicate that there is an obvious reduction in the abundance of the adduct peak at m/z = 700 accompanied by a concomitant increase in the abundance of two new isotopic envelopes centered at m/z = 716.2 and 732.2. These peaks are consistent with the addition of atomic (O) and molecular (O2) oxygen to the organometallic surface adduct, respectively. Moreover, this adduct appears to be oxidized with close to 50% conversion efficiency. After exposure to O2 and analysis by in situ TOF-SIMS the surfaces are positioned back into the soft landing region of the instrument and exposed to 10-4 Torr of C2H4 for 30 min. Following the second gas exposure the surface is transferred again to the SIMS region of the instrument for another round of analysis. Inspection of the TOF-SIMS spectrum following exposure to C2H4 indicates a decrease in the relative abundance of the singly oxidized organometallic adduct at m/z = 716. This observation is consistent with deoxygenation of the immobilized organometallic complex upon exposure to C2H4. This is hypothesized to result in the formation of the oxidized hydrocarbon (C2H4O), which is released to the gas-phase. Therefore, through a combination of soft landing of mass selected ions and analysis by in-situ TOF-SIMS it is possible to selectively isolate organometallic compounds on surfaces and examine their reactivity towards gaseous molecules. In addition, the behavior of undercoordinated ions that are not accessible in solution may be examined. A scheme describing what is achieved for this representative system through the combination of ion soft landing and analysis by in-situ TOF-SIMS is presented in Figure 3.
2. Studying the Charge Retention of Ru(bpy)32+ on COOH-SAMs Using In Situ FT-ICR-SIMS
Soft-landing of mass-selected ions is also conducted employing a second instrument that enables analysis of the surfaces by in situ FT-ICR-SIMS. This complementary approach, which enables SIMS analysis of the surfaces both during and after soft landing of ions, is capable of providing insight into the kinetics of charge reduction and neutralization as well as the desorption of ions deposited on surfaces115. It is a particularly powerful technique because the relative abundance of different ionic charge states on the surface may be monitored over periods of several hours. Representative results for Ru(bpy)32+ soft landed onto a COOH-SAM surface are presented in Figure 4. During soft landing the doubly charged Ru(bpy)32+ ion exhibits a linear increase in abundance on the COOH-SAM surface. The measured abundance reaches a maximum at the end of soft landing and is followed by an extended plateau on the COOH-SAM surface. This indicates that the COOH-SAM surface is particularly effective at preserving the ionic charge state of the intact ions following soft landing. The singly charged Ru(bpy)3+ ion also exhibits a linear increase in abundance with respect to time during soft landing. At the end of soft landing, however, the singly charged ion decreases in abundance. The abundance of the singly charged fragment ion resulting from loss of one bipyridine ligand from Ru(bpy)3+ forming Ru(bpy)2+ is also shown in Figure 4. This ion displays a linear increase in abundance during soft landing followed by a decline in abundance on the COOH-SAM after the end of deposition. Because the binding energy of ions to the surface increases with the charge state, it is reasonable to assume that singly charged ions undergo more facile desorption from the surface as compared to the doubly charged ions, which is consistent with the faster loss of singly charged ions observed in this study. Soft landing coupled with in situ FT-ICR-SIMS is, therefore, a powerful technique for investigating processes such as the reduction of charge, neutralization and desorption of ions deposited on surfaces.
3. Probing the Structural Features of Ru(bpy)32+ on COOH-SAMs Employing In Situ IRRAS
The third instrument used for characterizing soft-landed ions is able to obtain vibrational spectra of the Ru(bpy)32+ ions on the COOH-SAMs in addition to detecting changes to the chemically-modified surface due to ion-surface interactions. This instrument is particularly powerful because it measures changes in the vibrational features of the surface both during and after soft landing. Therefore, a wealth of structural information regarding soft landed ions may be obtained using this instrument, provided that sub-monolayer levels of ions are deposited and that the transition dipole moments of the soft landed ions are aligned favorably and possess sufficient intensity to interact with the polarized IR photons incident on the surface.
The infrared spectrum obtained following soft landing of 5 x 1012 Ru(bpy)32+ ions onto the COOH-SAM surface is presented in Figure 5. We note that because the IR spectrum of the bare COOH-SAM was used as the background spectrum, the features observed following ion deposition originate solely from the vibrational modes of the soft-landed ions. Nine vibrational features are noted with an asterisk in the IR spectrum as unique spectroscopic signatures of Ru(bpy)32+. These IR features are in good agreement with previously assigned values for this organometallic ion122,123. Out of the observed vibrational frequencies, the C-C stretching (1,606; 1,570; 1,042 cm-1) and C-C-H bending (1,466; 1,450; 1,420; 1,257; 1,186 cm-1) bands as well as the IR signature of a C-N stretch at 1,549 cm-1 are assigned as unique features of the molecular structure of Ru(bpy)32+. When conducting ion soft landing experiments, it is desirable to characterize the surface using spectroscopy techniques in order to confirm the identity of the species deposited and to gain insights into possible changes in structure that may result from ion-surface interactions. To this end, the in situ IRRAS soft landing instrument proves to be a valuable resource that contributes to the broader information gathered about the system of interest using TOF and FT-ICR-SIMS.
Figure 1. Schematic illustration of the ion deposition instrument coupled to the TOF-SIMS: I, ion funnel region (7 x 10-1 Torr). II, collision quadrupole region (1 x 10-1 Torr). III, mass selection and focusing region (2 x 10-4 Torr). IV, deposition region (1 x 10-6 Torr). (1) heated capillary, (2) electrodynamic ion funnel, (3) first conductance limit, (4) first collision quadrupole, (5) second conductance limit, (6) resolving quadrupole, (7) 2 focusing lenses, (8) second collision quadrupole, (9) third conductance limit, (10) Einzel lens, (11) quadrupole bender, (12) two Einzel lenses, (13) target platform, (14) surface mount, (15) magnetic translators. This figure has been modified from [Analytical Chemistry 2010, 82(13), 5718-5727]. Click here to view larger image.
Figure 2. TOF-SIMS spectra (m/z 690-740). Obtained a) after mass-selected deposition of Ru(bpy)22+ (black) and Ru(bpy)32+ (red) onto the surface of COOH-SAM, b) after exposure to O2 and c) after exposure to C2H4. This figure has been modified from [Chemistry-A European Journal 2010, 16(48), 14433-14438]. Click here to view larger image.
Figure 3. Schematic representation of the immobilization of Ru(bpy)22+ on COOH-SAM surfaces through gas-phase ligand stripping and soft landing of mass-selected ions. This figure has been modified from [Chemistry-A European Journal 2010, 16(48), 14433-14438]. Click here to view larger image.
Figure 4. FT-ICR SIMS kinetic plots. Obtained for Ru(bpy)32+ (m/z = 285, black squares), Ru(bpy)3+ (m/z = 570, blue triangles) and Ru(bpy)2+ (m/z = 414, red dots) following soft landing of Ru(bpy)32+ onto a COOH-SAM surface. Click here to view larger image.
Figure 5. IRRAS spectrum of ~5 x 1012 Ru(bpy)32+ ions soft landed on the surface of a COOH-SAM. The major vibrational features assigned to Ru(bpy)32+ are denoted by an asterisk. Click here to view larger image.
Soft landing of mass-selected ions is generally conducted employing unique custom-built instrumentation that exists in several laboratories around the world that are specially equipped for these experiments. Modifications are constantly being made to these instruments to facilitate the ionization of a wider array of compounds, to achieve larger ion currents and shorter deposition times, to multiplex soft landing and thereby achieve simultaneous deposition of several species at different locations on the surface, and to allow more accurate selection of ions by both mass-to-charge ratio and ion mobility prior to deposition. In a similar fashion, a constantly changing lineup of characterization techniques is being coupled with ion soft landing instrumentation to enable in situ analysis of deposited material. Despite these differences between individual instruments, one of the most common problems encountered in soft landing experiments is the inability to route a sufficiently strong and stable beam of mass-selected ions from the source region of the instrument to the surface. This may result from poor ionization efficiency at the source, improperly adjusted voltages that steer the ions through the instrument, and poor electrical contact between the surface and the electrometer used to measure the current of soft landed ions. In such troublesome situations, the ion beam may be routed through the instrument manually by first maximizing the ion current measured at the earliest stage of the instrument and then systematically optimizing the current measured on each subsequent optic along the total beam path. Common problems encountered during in situ analysis of soft landed materials include large background signals from contaminant molecules such as adventitious hydrocarbons. For this reason it is critical that the surfaces are prepared carefully and reproducibly prior to each soft landing experiment.
Soft landing of mass-selected ions may be used to prepare extremely well-defined surfaces for subsequent analysis by in situ SIMS and IRRAS spectroscopy as well as a whole host of additional ex situ microscopy and spectroscopy techniques6. Mass selection offers precise control over the molecular composition and ionic charge state of soft landed materials. Furthermore, unprecedented surface cleanliness is obtainable with ion soft landing because common contaminants such as neutral molecules, counterions and solvent that are present in solution are removed from the ion beam prior to deposition so that only the mass-selected ions are delivered to the substrate under sterile vacuum conditions. The coverage of ions on the surface may be carefully controlled by monitoring the current of soft landed ions and varying the length of the deposition accordingly. The kinetic energy of the ions may be reduced to achieve soft landing conditions or increased to promote reactive landing through covalent bond formation14 or “pinning” of ions into the surface22.
In situ TOF-SIMS, compared to the other FT-ICR-SIMS technique, is generally characterized by greater sensitivity, larger dynamic range, less fragmentation of sputtered secondary ions, and fewer reactions of sputtered material in the plume of secondary ions. The larger dynamic range and higher sensitivity of TOF-SIMS enable detection of low-abundance species produced by ion soft landing onto surfaces. Using in situ TOF-SIMS it is possible to identify adducts that are formed between soft landed ions and individual molecules on monolayer surfaces. In addition, in situ TOF-SIMS illustrates that undercoordinated ions prepared by gas-phase collision induced dissociation may be more active towards surface immobilization than fully ligated ions. It should be noted that these undercoordinated metal ions do not exist in the solution phase and, therefore, represent novel species prepared using the capabilities of the soft landing instrumentation and identified using TOF-SIMS. Another powerful capability of the in situ TOF-SIMS instrument is the ability to expose the surfaces to controlled pressures of reactive gases and subsequently analyze any changes in surface composition without breaking vacuum.
In situ FT-ICR-SIMS, while generally less sensitive and prone to somewhat higher yields of fragment ions and products of gas-phase ion-molecule reactions than TOF-SIMS, offers the additional capability of being able to monitor the composition of the surface both during and after soft landing over a period of several hours. This information is critical to understanding processes such as reduction of charge and desorption of ions from the surface. For example, this instrument has been used previously to monitor redox chemistry taking place between two different ions soft landed onto the same SAMs80. In addition, the charge reduction and desorption kinetics of multiply protonated peptide ions also have been studied using this instrument and the data was applied to produce a kinetic model describing the evolution of different charged species on the surfaces of SAMs over time.
Employing in situ IRRAS, structural information about soft landed ions on surfaces may be obtained to verify that the ions retain their integrity during the deposition process. This is achieved by comparing the measured infrared spectra of ions on surfaces with previous spectra obtained by infrared spectroscopy in the gas phase and solution phase as well as IR spectra calculated using theoretical modeling. By comparing this known structural information with the measured vibrational features of the deposited samples, changes to the gas-phase structures may be identified. In addition, insight into ion-surface interactions may be ascertained from the observation of vibrational features that increase in intensity during the course of soft landing. Such an observation is consistent with the formation of new bonds at the surface. In a similar vein, vibrational features that decrease during the soft landing process may be indicative of bond-breaking reactions.
The controlled preparation of high-purity thin films on surfaces is necessary for a variety of applications in materials science and microfabrication124. Currently, a popular method for the preparation of thin organic films and hybrid organic-inorganic interfaces is molecular layer deposition (MLD) which depends on self-limiting interfacial reactions occurring between molecules and surfaces125,126. MLD enables a great deal of control over the deposition process and, therefore, generally produces higher-quality films on surfaces than solution-phase methods127. Nevertheless, despite the widespread commercial use of MLD, this technique is known to suffer from several key limitations which have been reviewed in a recent publication128. Most importantly, due to the fact that MLD relies on deposition of neutral molecules from the gas phase it is limited to thermally stable reactants that have enough vapor pressure to yield efficient deposition rates without causing thermal degradation of the compound. Another limitation of MLD stems from the fact that the reactivity of molecules with solid supports may be significantly reduced in the absence of solvent. Soft landing of mass-selected ions onto surfaces overcomes these major limitations of MLD. First, gentle ionization employing electrospray may produce ions of large thermally labile molecules that have very low volatility without inducing fragmentation or degradation. In addition, non-thermal ion sources may be used to generate a range of homogeneous or heterogeneous clusters and nanoparticles that are not susceptible to thermal volatilization. Moreover, ions may be accelerated prior to deposition to the kinetic energy necessary to overcome any potential barriers associated with interfacial reactions.
Soft landing of mass-selected ions is particularly well suited to the controlled immobilization of complex molecules, clusters, and nanoparticles on substrates. However, commercial-scale preparation of materials with this technique is limited due to the fact that the typical ion currents obtained with ESI are several orders of magnitude lower than those currently utilized in existing micro- and nanofabrication methods. The continued development of bright high transmission ESI sources129-131, high power and fast repetition rate pulsed laser sources25,132 and continuous sources based on DC and RF magnetron sputtering43,65,133-135 is a crucial prerequisite for transitioning soft landing from a powerful tool in fundamental science to a practical approach for microfabrication. In the future, combining soft landing with ion mobility separation113 will facilitate accurate control of both the primary and the secondary structure of complex ions, which is important both for practical applications as well as for investigating the effect of different surfaces on the secondary structure of immobilized ions. Furthermore, the unique capabilities of soft landing instrumentation will be used to manipulate molecules in the gas-phase, either through collisional fragmentation or ion-molecule reactions, to generate novel species that are not obtainable through synthesis in solution.
The authors have nothing to disclose.
This research was funded by the Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Division of Chemical Sciences, Geosciences & Biosciences of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). GEJ acknowledges support from the Linus Pauling Fellowship and the Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). This work was performed using EMSL, a national scientific user facility sponsored by the Department of Energy's Office of Biological and Environmental Research and located at PNNL. PNNL is operated by Battelle for the U.S. DOE.
Gold on Silicon Substrates 1 cm2 | Platypus Technologies | Au.1000.SL1custom | |
Gold on Silicon Substrates 4.8 mm diameter circular | SPI Supplies | 4176GSW-AB | |
Glass Scintillation Vials | Fisher Scientific | 03-337-14 | |
Non-denatured Ethanol | Sigma-Aldrich | 459836-1L | |
Ultraviolet Cleaner | Boekel Scientific | ||
16-Mercaptohexadecanoic Acid | Sigma-Aldrich | 448303-5G | |
Hydrochloric Acid | Sigma-Aldrich | 320331-500ML | |
Aluminum Foil | Sigma-Aldrich | Z185140-1EA | |
Metal Forceps/Tweezers | Wiha | 49185 | |
Nitrile Gloves | Fisher Scientific | S66383 | |
Tris(2,2′-bipyridine)dichlororuthenium(II) hexahydrate | Sigma-Aldrich | 224758-1G | |
Methanol | Sigma-Aldrich | 322415-1L | |
1 mL Gas Tight Glass Syringe | Hamilton | ||
Syringe Pump | KD Scientific | 100 | |
360 um ID Fused Silica Capillary | Polymicro Technologies | TSP075375 | |
High Resistance Electrometer | Keithley | 6517A | |
Commercial TOF-SIMS Instrument | Physical Electronics | TRIFT | |
Ultra High Purity Oxygen | Matheson | G1979175 | |
Research Purity Ethylene | Matheson | G2250178 | |
Cesium Ion Source | Heat Wave Labs | 101502 | |
Commercial FTIR Spectrometer | Bruker | Vertex 70 |