Self-assembly of para-substituted benzenethiols on copper: An XPS study

Self-assembled adlayers of benzenethiol and its para-substituted derivatives on copper have been prepared by immersion into the solution and characterized by X-ray photoemission spectroscopy. The combined analysis of S 2p, C 1s and O 1s signals clearly shows the formation of a thiolate layer with S–Cu bond in all cases and no interaction between copper and the other functional groups.