Experimental Evidence for a Three-Body Interaction between Diffusing CO Molecules.
basic_science · Level V
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- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 27078795.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1021/acs.nanolett.5b05212.
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Abstract
The diffusion of carbon monoxide molecules on Cu(111) is investigated in time-lapsed scanning tunneling microscopy in a temperature range from 30 to 38 K. An asymptotic theory of adsorbate diffusion predicted a trio interaction that changes the diffusion barrier of three particles diffusing in close proximity beyond the change induced by the long-range interaction between three pairs of molecules. Distance-dependent variations in the diffusion energy confirm this theoretical prediction. In future, the theory can better assist experiments for a broader exploration, not only for diffusion, but also for nucleation and reaction.