Dynamics of propene adsorption on Ag(001)

The interaction of propene with Ag(001) is investigated by high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy and supersonic molecular beam methods under ultra high vacuum conditions. Propene adsorbs molecularly at 110 K and desorbs intact leaving a clean surface after annealing to 160 K. Two adsorption sites, characterized by slightly different vibrational modes, exist. The low frequency species is observed already at low coverage for molecules impinging at strongly hyperthermal energies while at lower translational energy it appears only at high coverage. The initial sticking probability S-0 decreases with increasing translational energy, as appropriate for nonactivated adsorption systems. The angle and energy dependence of S-0 indicate that scaling is intermediate between total and normal energy. From the coverage dependence of the sticking probability we infer that both a nonthermal intrinsic and a thermal extrinsic precursor exist