The origin of the high work function of chlorinated indium tin oxide

The impact of halogenation, in particular Cl and F, on the work functions of indium tin oxide (ITO) surfaces was studied using density functional theory calculations. We found that a strong surface dipole layer induced by the halogen, rather than a change in the electrochemical potential (that is, Fermi level) of the ITO, led to a dramatic increase in the work function. However, the work function for F-coated ITO was lower than that of Cl-coated ITO. This result contradicts the well-known fact that F is much more electronegative than Cl. Detailed computations reveal that both electronegativity and atomic size collectively contribute to the extraordinarily high work function of Cl-ITO. Additionally, the work function increases linearly with increasing surface halogen coverage for both systems, which was consistent with experimental data.