Surface and interface dipoles on catalytic metal films

Abstract The work function changes introduced by hydrogen on the surface and at the metal-support interface of a thin Pd-film were studied by simultaneous Kelvin probe and C(V) -measurements. It is demonstrated how these techniques can be used at atmospheric pressures to yield information about catalytic metals and on chemical kinetics on the metal surface. The main purpose of the communication is to point out the correlation between the surface and interface dipoles on catalytic metal films. Furthermore since the interface dipole is only created by hydrogen atoms it is shown how this can be used in a more complex situation to independently monitor the hydrogen content of the metal films.