Real-space evidence of Watson–Crick and Hoogsteen adenine–uracil base pairs on Au(111)

Abstract

From the interplay of high-resolution scanning tunneling microscopy imaging and density functional theory calculations, we show the real-space evidence of the formation of Watson–Crick and Hoogsteen adenine–uracil base pairs on an Au(111) surface with the employment of base derivatives, and further investigate the relative stability of the two types of adenine–uracil base pairs.