Supramolecular self-assembly on semiconductor surfaces and outlook

International audienceWhile spectacular molecular networks have been assembled on metal surfaces and then observed with scanning tunneling microscopy, there have been fewer studies of supramolecular networks on semiconductor surfaces, due to the high reactivity of their dangling bonds with organics. However, the saturation of the dangling bonds is known to make them inert and offers a unique way for the engineering of molecular patterns on these surfaces. In this talk, I will review a few examples of supramolecular networks on the passivated B-Si(111)-(3x3) R30° surface as a function of the molecule geometries and moieties. With the help of theoretical simulations, I will insist on the relative importance of the molecule-substrate and molecule-molecule interactions that give rise to several types of arrangements depending on the growth conditions. Based on the different packings that can be obtained, I will provide directions for the potential utility of these molecular-semiconductor interfaces