In Situ Electrochemical Scanning Tunneling Microscopy: Adlayers of Organic Molecules

Until recently, there had been only few in situ methods available for the structural determination of an electrode surface in solution at the atomic level. Now, several recent investigations have demonstrated scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) to be a powerful new technique for in situ characterization, with atomic resolution, of electrode surfaces under potentiostatic control. It has been demonstrated that the in situ STM makes it possible to monitor with atomic resolution a wide variety of electrode processes such as the adsorption of inorganic and organic species, the dissolution and deposition of metals and semiconductors. Owing to limitations on space, the focus is on the adsorption of organic molecules such as benzene and related compounds.