Inna Soroka

Exploring monovalent copper compounds with oxygen and hydrogen

New important applications of copper metal, e.g., in the areas of hydrogen production, fuel cell operation, and spent nuclear fuel disposal, require accurate knowledge of the physical and chemical properties of stable and metastable copper compounds. Among the copper(I) compounds with oxygen and hydrogen, cuprous oxide Cu2O is the only one stable and the best studied. Other such compounds are less known (CuH) or totally unknown (CuOH) due to their instability relative to the oxide. Here we combine quantum-mechanical calculations with experimental studies to search for possible compounds of monovalent copper. Cuprous hydride (CuH) and cuprous hydroxide (CuOH) are proved to exist in solid form. We establish the chemical and physical properties of these compounds, thereby filling the existing gaps in our understanding of hydrogen- and oxygen-related phenomena in Cu metal.

Cuprous hydroxide in a solid form: does it exist?

Experimental studies have been performed to obtain the unknown cuprous hydroxide compound, which has recently been predicted theoretically (P. A. Korzhavyi et. al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A., 2012, 109, 686-689) to be metastable in a solid form. The reduction of Cu(2+) with ferrous ethylenediamine tetraacetate (EDTA) results in the formation of a yellow powder precipitate whose composition corresponds to CuOH × H2O as probed by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and cryogenic X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). A similar compound has been found on the surface of Cu-CuH powder stored in water, as detected by XPS. The reduction of Cu(2+) to Cu(+) with free radicals in aqueous solutions results in a Cu2O precipitate as the final product, while the formation of the yellow cuprous hydroxide colloids may be an intermediate step. Our studies reveal that cuprous hydroxide does exist in a solid form and most likely has a hydrated form, CuOH × H2O.

Changes in electronic structure of copper films in aqueous solutions

The possibilities for using x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) to probe the Cu oxidation state and changes in the electronic structure during interaction between copper and ground-water solutions were examined. Surface modifications induced by chemical reactions of oxidized 100 A Cu films with Cl−, SO42− and HCO3− ions in aqueous solutions with various concentrations were studied in situ using liquid cells. Copper corrosion processes in ground water were monitored for up to nine days. By comparing Cu 2p–3d, 4s transitions for a number of reference substances previously measured, changes in electronic structure of the Cu films were analysed. The XAS and RIXS spectral shape at the Cu edge, the chemical shift of the main line for Cu2+, and the energy positions of the observed satellites served as a tool for monitoring the changes during the reaction. It was found that the pH value and the Cl− concentration in solutions strongly affect the speed of the corrosion reaction.

Bond Network Topology and Antiferroelectric Order in Cuprice CuOH

Using density functional theory (DFT) and a graph theory based approach, we investigated the topology of bond network in CuOH(s) (cuprice) considering only symmetry-distinct structures. In parallel, we conducted the synthesis and X-ray diffraction characterization of the compound and used the combined theoretical-experimental effort to validate the lowest energy structure obtained with DFT. The ground-state structure of CuOH(s) consists of compact trilayers of CuOH connected to each other via hydrogen bonds, where the inner layer of each trilayer is composed entirely of Cu atoms. Each trilayer is a dense fabric made of two interlocked arrays of polymer [CuOH]n chains. This structure corresponds to an antiferroelectric configuration where the dipole moments of CuOH molecules belonging to adjacent arrays are antiparallel and are arranged in the same way as the water molecules in ice-VIII. It is shown that a collective electrostatic interaction is the main driving force for the cation ordering while the local atomic configuration is maintained. These findings and the possibility of synthesizing exfoliated two-dimensional cuprice are important for some technological applications.

Template-based multiwalled TiO2/iron oxides nanotubes: Structure and magnetic properties

Double- and triple-walled TiO2/iron oxide nanotubes with well defined interfaces have been produced in nanoporous alumina templates using atomic layer deposition method. The structural properties of each individual layer are found to be dependent on the deposition temperatures. The outer layers of TiO2 are polycrystalline and consist of a phase mixture of anatase and rutile, while the inner TiO2 layers grown at lower temperature are amorphous. The iron oxide layers consist of pure hematite when deposited at 500 °C, while a phase mixture of hematite and magnetite was obtained at 400 °C. The magnetization measurements reveal that the studied nanotubes exhibit weak ferromagnetic behavior and magnetic anisotropy with an easy axis perpendicular to the tube axis.

Structural and magnetic properties of Al2O3/Ni81Fe19 thin films: from superparamagnetic nanoparticles to ferromagnetic multilayers

Structural and magnetic properties of Al2O3/Ni81Fe19 thin films: from superparamagnetic nanoparticles ferromagnetic multilayers

On the realization of artificial XY spin chains

Spin chains are the most elementary entities in the study of magnetic ordering behavior. The authors describe a route toward the realization of artificial XY spin chains. Using thin-film deposition ...

Thermodynamics of Stable and Metastable Cu-O-H Compounds

We apply density functional perturbation theory together with experimental studies in order to investigate the structure and physical properties of possible stable and metastable copper(I) compounds with oxygen and hydrogen. Copper(I) hydride, CuH, is found to be a metastable phase which decomposes at ambient conditions and exhibiting a semiconducting gap in the electronic spectrum. The calculated structure and phonon spectra are found to be in good agreement with experimental data. The phonon spectra of a novel metastable phase, copper(I) hydroxide, are also determined.

Resonant inelastic soft X-ray scattering studies of U(VI) reduction on iron surfaces

We report on the spectroscopic analysis of several samples relevant to the processes governing the behavior of oxidized uranium species in groundwater solutions under anoxic conditions. Both Fe samples with different times of exposure to the U(IV) solution and Fe metal-solution inetrfaces in the liquid cell ex-situ and in-situ , respectively. Resonant inelastic soft x-ray scattering is shown to be sensitive to the chemical state of uranium. The measurements were performed at a number of energies of the primary photon beam across the U 5d absorption edge. The results unambiguously indicate the reduction of U(VI) to U(IV) on the Fe surface.

Guiding of highly charged ions through insulating nanocapillaries

The guiding of highly charged ions through nanocapillaries in different insulating materials, such as polyethylene terephthalate, SiO2, and Al2O3 has been investigated by our group, using 7 keV Ne7 ...