Small organic molecules on transition metal surfaces and Monte Carlo simulations of bimetallic surface alloys

The way in which atoms and molecules organize at the nanoscale is explored in this work. Au(111) and Pd(111) single crystal surfaces are modified by adsorption of small organic molecules and the way they self-organize in such surfaces and even strongly affect the metallic substrate in some cases is explored by means of scanning tunneling microscopy. Achieving a fundamental understanding of such structures and the way they correlate with macroscopic measurements is of critical importance for the development of nanotechnology related applications. Another nanoscale process that is described in this work is the formation of bimetallic surface alloys and this is explored by means of Monte Carlo simulations and the results are correlated to experimental measurements for Au/Pd(111) surface alloys.