An effusive molecular beam technique for studies of polyatomic gas–surface reactivity and energy transfer

An effusive molecular beam technique is described to measure alkane dissociative sticking coefficients, S(T_g, T_s; ϑ), on metal surfaces for which the impinging gas temperature, T_g, and surface temperature, T_s, can be independently varied, along with the angle of incidence, ϑ, of the impinging gas. Effusive beam experiments with T_g = T_s = T allow for determination of angle-resolved dissociative sticking coefficients, S(T; ϑ), which when averaged over the cos (ϑ)/π angular distribution appropriate to the impinging flux from a thermal ambient gas yield the thermal dissociative sticking coefficient, S(T). Nonequilibrium S(T_g, T_s; ϑ) measurements for which T_g ≠ T_s provide additional opportunities to characterize the transition state and gas–surface energy transfer at reactive energies. A resistively heated effusive molecular beam doser controls the T_g of the impinging gas striking the surface. The flux of molecules striking the surface from the effusive beam is determined from knowledge of the dosing geometry, chamber pressure, and pumping speed. Separate experiments with a calibrated leak serve to fix the chamber pumping speed. Postdosing Auger electron spectroscopy is used to measure the carbon of the alkyl radical reaction product that is deposited on the surface as a result of alkane dissociative sticking. As implemented in a typical ultrahigh vacuum chamber for surface analysis, the technique has provided access to a dynamic range of roughly 6 orders of magnitude in the initial dissociative sticking coefficient for small alkanes on Pt(111).