Nitrogen interactions at metal surfaces

Molecular beam experiments with specially prepared beams allow the study of the interaction of very reactive species with surfaces. In the present case the interaction of N-atoms with Ag(1 1 1) is studied. The energy of the atoms is around 5 eV, precisely between the classical energy regimes of seeded molecular beams and low energy ion scattering. We will show evidence that the electronic state of the incident atoms is very important in the interaction. The systems studied experimentally have also been investigated by theoretical modeling. Comparisons between theory and experiment will be discussed. We will consider if N-atoms can lead to a passive adlayer that is not reactive to subsequent N-atoms. It appears unlikely, which may be a consequence of incident N-atoms can removing adsorbed N-atoms in an Eley–Rideal reaction.