A Surface Nanocavity Structure of Bisphenol P on TiO_2 Showing Interfacial Charge-Transfer Absorption

摘要

Nanocavity structures provide important functions of ion or molecular inclusions for chemical sensing, molecular recogni- tion, and selective chemical extraction. Architecture of surface nanocavity structures of organic compounds on inorganic semiconductor surfaces is an interesting subject for exploring novel functional nanostructures. In this communication, we demonstrate the formation of a surface nanocavity structure of bisphenol P on a wide-band-gap semiconductor titanium dioxide (TiO_2). The coordination of the two phenol moieties in bisphenol P with surfaces Ti atoms on TiO_2 leads to the formation of the organic-semiconductor nanocavity structure. In addition, the nanocavity structure shows interfacial charge- transfer (ICT) transitions in the visible region. The ICT transitions change the electric-field distribution inside the nanocavity, suggesting the possibility of optically responsive inclusion functions. Our work reveals a way toward a novel type of functional nanocavity structures.