US-Federal Republic of Germany Cooperative Research on the Properties and Reactivity of Metal Clusters

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This award supports Dr. Karl A. Gingerich to collaborate with Dr. Winfried Schulze and Dr. D. M. Kolb of the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Gesellschaft, Berlin, FRG, in spectroscopic studies of the reactions of metal clusters ranging in size from two atoms to colloidal particles. With Dr. Schulze, he will investigate the dependence of the electronic and vibrational energy levels on cluster size, the stability of neutral and charged clusters and of their specific reactivity using a wide variety of modern research techniques. Specific systems to be studied include clusters of lithium, iron and nickel, and their interactions with nitrogen and carbon monoxide in low temperature matrices and in the gas phase. With Dr. Kolb, he will measure the optical spectra of molecules such as Germanium, Aluminum and Gallium. These molecules have been or are being studied by equilibrium mass spectrometry at Texas A & M to obtain their bond energies. Dr. Schulze's group is concerned with the preparation, characteri- zation and reactions of metal clusters. They have extensive experience in optical and vibrational studies of matrix-isolated metals and metallic clusters. Also, they have refined the gas aggregation technique to generate metal clusters in narrow size distributions and in high intensities, including colloidal sizes. Dr. Kolb's group is concerned with fundamental aspects of matrix isolation spectroscopy of metal atoms and small clusters, using optical spectroscopy as their principal analytical tool. A major objective of their work is to improve fundamental understanding of matrix effects on electronic transitions and geometry. Dr. Gingerich's research has involved using equilibrium mass spectroscopy to study the bond energies of small inorganic molecules, most of them diatomic metals and small metallic clusters that are important in catalytic processes. Through collaboration, he will gain more experience in the preparation and spectroscopic study of metal clusters larger than the ones he has been investigating. He also will learn techniques for studying their reactivity and catalytic action. In view of the development of laser spectroscopy and the extablishment of a Surface Science Center at Texas A & M, this experience will lay the groundwork for extending his research on metal clusters into catalysis and surface science oriented studies.