Transfer of chirality from adsorbed chiral molecules to the substrate highlighted by circular dichroism in angle-resolved valence photoelectron spectroscopy

Studies of self-assembled chiral molecules on achiral metallic surfaces have mostly focused on the determination of the geometry of adsorbates and their electronic structure. The aim of this paper is to provide direct information on the chirality character of the system and on the chirality transfer from molecules to substrate by means of circular dichroism in the angular distribution of valence photoelectrons for the extended domain of the chiral self-assembled molecular structure, formed by alaninol adsorbed on Cu(100). We show, by the dichroic behavior of a mixed molecule-copper valence state, that the presence of molecular chiral domains induces asymmetry in the interaction with the substrate and locally transfers the chiral character to the underlying metal atoms participating in the adsorption process; combined information related to the asymmetry of the initial electronic state, which is expected to be chiral, and the final electronic state, which locally probes the asymmetry of the potential, has been obtained. Identification of chirality in the adsorption footprint sheds new light on the transfer of chirality from a chiral modifier to a symmetric metal surface and represents an important aspect for controlling and tuning the functionality of the molecule-metal interfaces.