Monoxide carbon frequency shift as a tool for the characterization of TiO2 surfaces: Insights from first principles spectroscopy

The adsorption and vibrational frequency of CO on defective and undefective titanium dioxide surfaces is examined applying first-principles molecular dynamics simulations. In particular, the vibrational frequencies are obtained beyond the harmonic approximation, through the time correlation functions of the atomic trajectories. In agreement with experiments, at low CO coverages we find an upshift in the vibration frequency with respect to the free CO molecule, of 45 and 35 cm-1 on the stoichiometric rutile (110) and anatase (101) faces, respectively. A band falling 8 cm-1 below the frequency corresponding to the perfect face is observed for the reduced rutile (110) surface in the low vacancy concentration limit, where the adsorption is favored on Ti4+ sites. At a higher density of defects, adsorption on Ti3+ sites becomes more stable, accompanied by a downshift in the stretching band. In the case of anatase (101), we analyze the effect of subsurface oxygen vacancies, which have been shown to be predominant in this material. Interestingly, we find that the adsorption of CO on five coordinate Ti atoms placed over subsurface vacancies is favored with respect to other Ti4+ sites (7.25 against 6.95 kcal/mol), exhibiting a vibrational redshift of 20 cm-1 . These results provide the basis to quantitatively assess the degree of reduction of rutile and anatase surfaces via IR spectroscopy, and at the same time allow for the assignment of characteristic bands in the CO spectra on TiO2 whose origin has remained ambiguous.Fil: Lustemberg, Pablo German. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Rosario. Instituto de Física de Rosario (i); Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Inorgánica, Analítica y Quimica Fisica; ArgentinaFil: Scherlis Perel, Damian Ariel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química, Física de Los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Inorgánica, Analítica y Quimica Fisica; Argentin

A unified electrostatic and cavitation model for first-principles molecular dynamics in solution

The electrostatic continuum solvent model developed by Fattebert and Gygi is combined with a first-principles formulation of the cavitation energy based on a natural quantum-mechanical definition for the surface of a solute. Despite its simplicity, the cavitation contribution calculated by this approach is found to be in remarkable agreement with that obtained by more complex algorithms relying on a large set of parameters. Our model allows for very efficient Car-Parrinello simulations of finite or extended systems in solution, and demonstrates a level of accuracy as good as that of established quantum-chemistry continuum solvent methods. We apply this approach to the study of tetracyanoethylene dimers in dichloromethane, providing valuable structural and dynamical insights on the dimerization phenomenon

Halide-mediated Modification of magnetism and electronic structure of α-Co (II) hydroxides: synthesis, characterization, and DFT+ U simulations

The present study introduces a comprehensive exploration in terms of physicochemical characterization and calculations based on density functional theory with Hubbard's correction (DFT+U) of the whole family of α-Co(II) hydroxyhalide (F, Cl, Br, I). These samples were synthesized at room temperature by employing a one-pot approach based on the epoxide route. A thorough characterization (powder X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis/mass spectroscopy, and magnetic and conductivity measurements) corroborated by simulation is presented that analyzes the structural, magnetic, and electronic aspects. Beyond the inherent tendency of intercalated anions to modify the interlayer distance, the halide's nature has a marked effect on several aspects. Such as the modulation of the CoOh to CoTd ratio, as well as the inherent tendency towards dehydration and irreversible decomposition. Whereas the magnetic behavior is strongly correlated with the CoTd amount reflected in the presence of glassy behavior with high magnetic disorder, the electrical properties depend mainly on the nature of the halide. The computed electronic structures suggest that the CoTd molar fraction exerts a minor effect on the inherent conductivity of the phases. However, the band gap of the solid turns out to be significantly dependent on the nature of the incorporated halide, governed by ligand to metal charge transfer, which minimizes the gap as the anionic radius becomes larger. Conductivity measurements of pressed pellets confirm this trend. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the magnetic and electrical properties of α-Co(II) hydroxyhalides validated with in silico descriptions, opening the gate for the rational design of layered hydroxylated phases with tunable electrical, optical, and magnetic properties

First-principles molecular dynamics simulations at solid-liquid interfaces with a continuum solvent

Continuum solvent models have become a standard technique in the context of electronic structure calculations, yet, no implementations have been reported capable to perform molecular dynamics at solid-liquid interfaces. We propose here such a continuum approach in a DFT framework, using plane-waves basis sets and periodic boundary conditions. Our work stems from a recent model designed for Car-Parrinello simulations of quantum solutes in a dielectric medium [J. Chem. Phys. 124, 74103 (2006)], for which the permittivity of the solvent is defined as a function of the electronic density of the solute. This strategy turns out to be inadequate for systems extended in two dimensions, by introducing new term in the Kohn-Sham potential which becomes unphysically large at the interfacial region, seriously affecting the convergence. If the dielectric medium is properly redefined as a function of the atomic coordinates, a good convergence is obtained and the constant of motion is conserved during the molecular dynamics simulations. Moreover, a significant gain in efficiency can be achieved if the simulation box is partitioned in two, solving the Poisson problem separately for the "dry" region using fast Fourier transforms, and for the solvated or "wet" region using a multigrid method. Eventually both solutions are combined in a self-consistent procedure, and in this way Car-Parrinello molecular dynamics simulations of solid-liquid interfaces can be performed at a very moderate computational cost. This scheme is employed to investigate the acid-base equilibrium at the TiO2-water interface.Comment: 36 pages, 7 figure

Water filling of hydrophilic nanopores

Molecular dynamics simulations of water in cylindrical hydrophilic pores with diameters of 1.5 and 3 nm were performed to explore the phase behavior and the nucleation dynamics of the confined fluid as a function of the percentage of volume filled f. The interactions of water with the pore wall were considered to be identical to the interactions between water molecules. At low water contents, all the water is adsorbed to the surface of the pore. A second phase consisting of a liquid plug appears at the onset filling for capillary condensation, fonset =27% and 34% for the narrow and wide pores, respectively. In agreement with experimental results for silica pores, the liquid phase appears close to the equilibrium filling feq in the 1.5 nm pore and under conditions of strong surface supersaturations for the 3 nm pore. After condensation, two phases, a liquid plug and a surface-adsorbed phase, coexist in equilibrium. Under conditions of phase coexistence, the water surface density Tcoex was found to be independent of the water content and the diameter of the pore. The value of Tcoex found in the simulations (∼3 nm-2) is in good agreement with experimental results for silica pores, suggesting that the interactions of water with silica and with itself are comparable. The surface-adsorbed phase at coexistence is a sparse monolayer with a structure dominated by small water clusters. We characterize the density and structure of the liquid and surface phases, the nucleation mechanism of the water plug, and the effect of surface hydrophilicity on the two-phase equilibrium and hysteresis. The results are discussed in light of experiments and previous simulations. © 2010 American Institute of Physics.Fil: de la Llave, Ezequiel Pablo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Inorgánica, Analítica y Química Física; ArgentinaFil: Molinero, Valeria. University of Utah; Estados UnidosFil: Scherlis Perel, Damian Ariel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Inorgánica, Analítica y Química Física; Argentin