The interaction between an adsorbed 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide, [BMP][TFSA], ionic liquid (IL) layer and a Ag(111) substrate, under ultrahigh-vacuum conditions, was investigated in a combined experimental and theoretical approach, by high-resolution scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and dispersion-corrected density functional theory calculations (DFT-D). Most importantly, we succeeded in unambiguously identifying cations and anions in the adlayer by comparing experimental images with submolecular resolution and simulated STM images based on DFT calculations, and these findings are in perfect agreement with the 1:1 ratio of anions and cations adsorbed on the metal derived from XPS measurements. Different adlayer phases include a mobile 2D liquid phase at room temperature and two 2D solid phases at around 100 K, i.e., a 2D glass phase with short-range order and some residual, but very limited mobility and a long-range ordered 2D crystalline phase. The mobility in the different adlayer phases, including melting of the 2D crystalline phase, was evaluated by dynamic STM imaging. The DFT-D calculations show that the interaction with the substrate is composed of mainly van der Waals and weak electrostatic (dipole-induced dipole) interactions and that upon adsorption most of the charge remains at the IL, leading to attractive electrostatic interactions between the adsorbed species.

The growth, structure formation and thermal disordering of (sub-)monolayer films of 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium-bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [BMP][TFSA] grown under ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) conditions on Au(111) have been investigated using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and angle resolved X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (ARXPS) under UHV conditions at temperatures between 100 and 298 K. At room temperature, two-dimensional film growth occurs up to one monolayer coverage, with both cations and anions in direct contact with the gold substrate, as shown by ARXPS, and STM images reveal a 2D liquid state of the adlayer. At lower temperatures, motion is frozen and a disordered 2D glass state as well as a 2D crystalline phase with long-range order are formed. The structure of the 2D crystalline phase is influenced by the underlying Au(111) reconstruction pattern. Annealing experiments reveal that the 2D crystalline phase is thermally more stable against melting than the 2D glass state, and that the stability is strongly affected by the adsorbate coverage.

Aiming at a comprehensive understanding of the interaction of ionic liquids (ILs) with metal surfaces we have investigated the adsorption of two closely related ILs, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [EMIM][TFSA] and 1-methyl-3-octylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [OMIM][TFSA], with two noble metal surfaces, Au(111) and Ag(111), under ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) conditions using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). At room temperature, the ILs form a 2D liquid on either of the two surfaces, while at lower temperatures they condense into two-dimensional (2D) islands which exhibit ordered structures or a short-range ordered 2D glass structure. Comparison of the adlayer structures formed in the different adsorption systems and also with those determined recently for n-butyl-n-methylpyrrolidinium [TFSA](-) adlayers on Ag(111) and Au(111) (B. Uhl et al., Beilstein J. Nanotechnol., 2013, 4, 903) gains detailed insight into the adsorption geometry of the IL ions on the surface. The close similarity of the adlayer structures indicates that (i) the structure formation is dominated by the tendency to optimize the anion adsorption geometry, and that (ii) also in the present systems the cation adsorbs with the alkyl chain pointing up from the surface.

The ionic liquid (IL) 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [BMP][TFSA] is a promising candidate for improved nextgeneration rechargeable lithium−ion batteries. We here report results of a model study of the reactive interaction of (sub-)monolayers and multilayers of [BMP][TFSA] with lithium (Li) on Cu(111), employing scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIRS) under ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) conditions. Upon post-deposition of Li on [BMP][TFSA] multilayers at 80 K, we identified changes in the chemical state of the [TFSA] anion and the [BMP] cation as well as in the IR absorption bands related to the anion. These changes are most likely due to the decomposition of the IL adlayer into a variety of products like LiF, Li 2 S, and Li 2 O upon anion decomposition and LiN 3 , LiC x H y N, and Li x CH y upon cation decomposition, where the latter includes cracking of the pyrrolidinium ring. Deposition of Li on [BMP][TFSA] (sub-)monolayer-covered surfaces led to similar decomposition patterns, and the same was also observed for the reverse deposition order. The addition of the corresponding amounts of Li to a [BMP][TFSA] adlayer resulted in distinct changes in the STM images, which must be due to the surface reaction. After annealing to 300 K, the core-level peaks of the cation lose most of their peak area. Upon further heating to 450 K, the anion is nearly completely decomposed, resulting in LiF and Li 2 S decomposition products that dominate the interface.

The reactive interaction of the ionic liquid 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [BMP][TFSA] with Cu(111) was investigated by scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) under ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) conditions. Decomposition between 300 K and 350 K is manifested by changes in the surface structure monitored with STM. XPS reveals that mainly the [TFSA] anion is decomposed.

SummaryIn order to resolve substrate effects on the adlayer structure and structure formation and on the substrate–adsorbate and adsorbate–adsorbate interactions, we investigated the adsorption of thin films of the ionic liquid (IL) 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium-bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [BMP][TFSA] on the close-packed Ag(111) and Au(111) surfaces by scanning tunneling microscopy, under ultra high vacuum (UHV) conditions in the temperature range between about 100 K and 293 K. At room temperature, highly mobile 2D liquid adsorbate phases were observed on both surfaces. At low temperatures, around 100 K, different adsorbed IL phases were found to coexist on these surfaces, both on silver and gold: a long-range ordered (‘2D crystalline’) phase and a short-range ordered (‘2D glass’) phase. Both phases exhibit different characteristics on the two surfaces. On Au(111), the surface reconstruction plays a major role in the structure formation of the 2D crystalline phase. In combination with recent density functional theory calculations, the sub-molecularly resolved STM images allow to clearly discriminate between the [BMP]+ cation and [TFSA]− anion.

The competition between intermolecular interactions and lateral variations in the molecule-substrate interactions has been studied by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), comparing the phase formation of (sub)monolayers of the organic molecule 2,4'-BTP on buckled graphene/Ru(0001) and Ag(111) oriented thin films on Ru(0001). On the Ag films, the molecules form a densely packed 2D structure, while on graphene/Ru(0001), only the areas between the maxima are populated. The findings are rationalized by a high corrugation in the adsorption potential for 2,4'-BTP molecules on graphene/Ru(0001). These findings are supported by temperature programmed desorption (TPD) experiments and theoretical results.

Aiming at a fundamental understanding of the processes at the electrode|ionic liquid interface in Li ion batteries, we investigated the interaction of the ionic liquid n-butyl-n-methylpyrrolidinium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [BMP][TFSA] and of Li with a reduced rutile TiO2(110) (1 × 1) surface as well as the interaction between [BMP][TFSA] and Li on the TiO2(110) surface under ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) conditions by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning tunnelling microscopy. Between 80 K and 340 K [BMP][TFSA] adsorbs molecularly on the surface and at higher temperatures decomposition is observed, resulting in products such as Sad, Fad and TiNx. The decomposition pattern is compared to proposals based on theory. Small amounts of Li intercalate even at 80 K into TiO2(110), forming Li(+) and Ti(3+) species. The stoichiometry in the near surface region corresponds to Li7Ti5O12. For higher coverages in the range of several monolayers part of the Li remains on the surface, forming a Li2O cover layer. At 300 K, Ti(3+) species become sufficiently mobile to diffuse into the bulk. Li post-deposition on a [BMP][TFSA] covered TiO2(110) surface at 80 K results in two competing reactions, Li intercalation and reaction with the IL, resulting in the decomposition of the IL. Upon warming up, the Ti(3+) formed at low T is consumed by reaction with the IL adlayer and intermediate decomposition products. Post-deposition of [BMP][TFSA] (300 K) on a surface pre-covered with a Li2O/Li7Ti5O12 layer results in the partial reaction of [BMP][TFSA] with the Li(+) and Ti(3+) species, which gets completed at higher temperatures.