Effect of oxide vacancies on metal island nucleation

Point defects on oxide surfaces, presumably oxygen vacancies, are traditionally considered preferential nucleation centers for metal island formation. In a series of first-principles calculations for transition and noble metal nucleation on MgO(1 0 0), we show that the propensity for neutral anion vacancies to nucleate metal islands is strongly element dependent: To the right in a period, where d-shell filling is substantial, vacancies typically inhibit nucleation, whereas the opposite holds for far-left elements. This bears significant implications for the system-specific design of metal-oxide interface properties. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.