A semiempirical addition of dispersive forces to conventional density functionals (DFT-D) has been implemented into a pseudopotential plane-wave code. Test calculations on the benzene dimer reproduced the results obtained by using localized basis set, provided that the latter are corrected for the basis set superposition error. By applying the DFT-D/plane-wave approach a substantial agreement with experiments is found for the structure and energetics of polyethylene and graphite, two typical solids that are badly described by standard local and semilocal density functionals.

We report on a stepwise on-surface polymerization reaction leading to oriented graphene nanoribbons on Au(111) as the final product. Starting from the precursor 4,4″-dibromo-p-terphenyl and using the Ullmann coupling reaction followed by dehydrogenation and C-C coupling, we have developed a fine-tuned, annealing-triggered on-surface polymerization that allows us to obtain an oriented nanomesh of graphene nanoribbons via two well-defined intermediate products, namely, p-phenylene oligomers with reduced length dispersion and ordered submicrometric molecular wires of poly(p-phenylene). A fine balance involving gold catalytic activity in the Ullmann coupling, appropriate on-surface molecular mobility, and favorable topochemical conditions provided by the used precursor leads to a high degree of long-range order that characterizes each step of the synthesis and is rarely observed for surface organic frameworks obtained via Ullmann coupling.

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High-resolution core-and valence-level photoemission spectra of Nb-doped TiO 2 ceramics (Ti 1Ϫx Nb x O 2 with 0.01ϽxϽ0.8) have been measured using monochromatic x-ray excitation. Nb doping produces a welldefined photoemission peak in the bulk band gap of rutile, whose intensity increases with increasing doping level. Core-level spectroscopy shows that the Nb is incorporated within the rutile lattice at low doping levels mainly as Nb͑V͒ and that the gap state is associated with Ti͑III͒ ions. This conclusion is reinforced by variable energy photoemission measurements on Ti 0.9 Nb 0.1 O 2 in the vicinity of the Ti 3p and Nb 4p core thresholds. The photoemission resonance profile for the gap states reaches half maximum intensity at the same energy as found for oxygen-deficient TiO 2Ϫx but is shifted from the resonance profile for the Nb 4d states of NbO 2 . STM images on Nb-doped TiO 2 ͑110͒ are considered in relation to the spectroscopic measurements. Nb dopant atoms are imaged as ''bright spot'' clusters, implying delocalization of charge from Nb onto neighboring Ti ions. The experimental x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy data are compared with density-of-states profiles derived from local-density approximation calculations on pure and Nb-doped TiO 2 clusters. These calculations show that Nb doping of TiO 2 introduces new states of mixed Nb 4d -Ti 3d character above the O 2p valence band of the host material. In addition, there is increased x-ray photoemission intensity across the O 2p valence band owing to strong Nb 4d/O 2p hybridization and a cross section for ionization of Nb 4d states that is an order of magnitude larger than that for O 2p or Ti 3d states.

A careful choice of the surface coverage of iron phthalocyanine (FePc) on Ag (110) around the single monolayer allows us to drive with high precision both the long-range supramolecular arrangement and the local adsorption geometry of FePc molecules on the given surface. We show that this opens up the possibility of sharply switching the catalytic activity of FePc in the oxygen reduction reaction and contextual surface oxidation in a reproducible way. A comprehensive and detailed picture built on diverse experimental evidence from scanning tunnelling microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray absorption spectroscopy, coupled with density functional theory calculations, sheds new light on the nature of the catalytically active molecule-surface coordination and on the boundary conditions for its occurrence. The results are of relevance for the improvement of the catalytic efficiency of metallo-macrocycles as viable substitutes for platinum in the cathodic compartment of low-temperature fuel cells.

The reactions of pyrazole (Hpz) with some copper(II) carboxylates in the presence of water yield trinuclear copper derivatives characterized by the triangular core [Cu3mu3-OH)(mu-pz)3(RCOO)2] (R = H, C2H5, C3H7). Copper(II) formate gives [Cu3(mu3-OH)(mu-pz)3(HCOO)2(Hpz)2] (1), whereas copper propionate and butyrate afford [Cu3(mu3-OH)(mu-pz)3(C2H5COO)2(EtOH)] (2) and [Cu3(mu3-OH)(mu-pz)3(C3H7COO)2(MeOH)(H2O)] (3), respectively, both containing solvent molecules coordinated to copper atoms. Magnetic susceptibilities are consistent with a single unpaired electron for each trinuclear unit of 1-3, and EPR measurements indicate that higher spin states, generated by exchange coupling between copper atoms, may be populated at room temperature. Density-functional calculations provide the description of the electronic structures of 1-3, allowing, at the same time, the assignment of their UV-vis absorption spectra. X-ray molecular structure determinations show that triangular trinuclear units of 1 are connected to each other through single formate bridges, forming one-dimensional (1D) zigzag coordination polymers, whereas in 2 and 3, two oxygen atoms of two carboxylate ions doubly bridge two copper atoms of different triangles, thus generating hexanuclear units. Moreover, in 2, two other propionate ions link together two hexanuclear units yielding a 12-membered cycle and giving rise to 1D coordination polymers. The supramolecular assemblies of 1-3 are compared to that of the previously reported trinuclear triangular copper(II) derivative [Cu3(mu3-OH)(mu-pz)3(CH3COO)2(Hpz)] (A), where a two-dimensional (2D) coordination polymer is present. The reactions of 3,5-dimethylpyrazole (Hpz) with copper(II) carboxylates in the same conditions yield 1:2 Cu(RCOO)2/Hpz adducts.

We investigate the structure and energetics of low-index surfaces of the TiO2-B polymorph by means of periodic density functional theory calculations within the generalized gradient approximation. The bulk structure contains two nonequivalent Ti ions, one of them exhibiting an octahedral coordination, while the other is square-pyramidal. When exposed at the surface, these two types of ions display different relaxation schemes, which ultimately tend to make them more similar. On the basis of the computed surface energies and of the Wulff construction, we predict for TiO2-B a pseudohexagonal prismatic equilibrium shape and an average surface energy practically identical to that of TiO2-anatase

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