Ethylene adsorption on Pt(111) at 95 K was studied by temperature programed desorption (TPD), low energy electron diffraction (LEED), and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Ethylene desorbs reversibly at 112 K and irreversibly at 255 and 280 K. It is generally accepted that annealing of ethylene adsorbed on Pt(111) to 300 K results in a dehydrogenation to ethylidyne through an ethylidene intermediate. This was observed by a hydrogen desorption peak at 300 K. Also, hydrogenation of the adsorbed ethylene was observed by a small ethane desorption peak at 300 K. Upon heating to 700 K, the ethylidyne species will further dehydrogenate to carbidic carbon species with hydrogen desorption peaks at 460 and 640 K. If the carbidic species is heated to higher temperatures (up to 1000 K), it will further dehydrogenate and form graphitic islands which will accumulate by Ostwald ripening in larger islands at the step edges of the surface. After annealing the sample to 1000 K, a statistically distributed 8 x 8 superstructure of these graphite islands is achieved, as interpreted from a ring pattern in the LEED data. The TPD results indicate that ethylene adsorption on Pt(I I I) results in the formation of graphitic islands upon heating to 1000 K, contrary to previous conjectures of formation of a full graphite monolayer.(c) 2007 American Vacuum Society.