Noble metal surface degradation induced by organothiols

Copper, silver and gold layers evaporated on the muscovite mica (001) surface were exposed to a series of molecules containing an organothiol and/or a carboxylic acid chemical functional group to investigate the potential of these compounds to modify the surfaces. The surfaces were investigated using optical microscopy, atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive analysis of X-rays, and X-ray diffraction. Organothiols containing a carboxylic acid group were found to change the surface morphology drastically over a period of days, while molecules containing only one of these functional groups were usually not able to do so. The mechanism is most likely a reaction between the organothiol and the metal surface, forming a thermodynamically stable new compound. This finding could be of importance in the many applications where organothiols are used to functionalize noble metal surfaces