Electrochemical formation and characterization of Au nanostructures on a highly ordered pyrolytic graphite surface

•The electrodeposition of Au on HOPG tends to follow the response predicted for a 3D instantaneous nucleation mechanism in the potential range considered.•By choosing suitable nucleation and growth pulses, one-dimensional deposits were possible, preferentially located on step edges of the HOPG substrate.•Quantum-mechanical calculations confirmed the tendency of Au atoms to join selectively on the HOPG step edges, at the early stages of Au electrodeposition. The electrochemical formation of Au nanoparticles on a highly ordered pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) substrate using conventional electrochemical techniques and ex-situ AFM is reported. From the potentiostatic current transients studies, the Au electrodeposition process on HOPG surfaces was described, within the potential range considered, by a model involving instantaneous nucleation and diffusion controlled 3D growth, which was corroborated by the microscopic analysis. Initially, three-dimensional (3D) hemispherical nanoparticles distributed on surface defects (step edges) of the substrate were observed, with increasing particle size at more negative potentials. The double potential pulse technique allowed the formation of rounded deposits at low deposition potentials, which tend to form lines of nuclei aligned in defined directions leading to 3D ordered structures. By choosing suitable nucleation and growth pulses, one-dimensional (1D) deposits were possible, preferentially located on step edges of the HOPG substrate. Quantum-mechanical calculations confirmed the tendency of Au atoms to join selectively on surface defects, such as the HOPG step edges, at the early stages of Au electrodeposition.