Quantum State Resolved Studies of Gas-Surface Interaction Dynamics

在这项由实验物理化学计划资助的奖项中，德克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校的格雷格·西茨教授和他的研究生和本科生同事将研究振动激发的氢分子在特征良好的固体表面上的散射。振动激发的氢和表面之间的能量转移的研究将集中在非绝热效应--即振动能量损失到表面电子自由度的情况下。西茨教授的实验室以及其他人的实验室最近的研究表明，这种情况比之前认为的更常见，但人们对此仍然知之甚少。这些实验的目的是获得可以与最好的理论工作相比较的基准数据，以便更好地理解这些过程。气相分子物种的反应在工业应用(如化学气相沉积、半导体加工)中具有重要意义。这样的工作或Sitz教授和他的学生合作者的目的是为了对发生在这些令人难以置信的复杂环境中的化学有一个更坚定的理解。西茨教授还致力于为在他的实验室工作的本科生研究人员提供独特的、广泛的研究机会。

In this award, funded by the Experimental Physical Chemistry Program, Prof. Greg Sitz of the University of Texas at Austin and his graduate and undergraduate student colleagues will study the scattering of vibrationally excited hydrogen molecules off of well-characterized solid surfaces. The study of energy transfer between vibrationally excited hydrogen and surfaces will focus on non-adiabatic effects -- i.e. cases where vibrational energy is lost to surface electronic degrees of freedom. Recent work in Prof. Sitz's laboratory, as well as the laboratories of others, suggest that this is more common than previously believed, yet it remains poorly understood. The goal of these experiments is to obtain benchmark data that can be compared with the best theoretical efforts, in order to come to a better understanding of these processes.The reaction of gas-phase molecular species is of fundamental importance in industrial applications (e.g. chemical vapor deposition, semiconductor processing). Work like that or Prof. Sitz and his student collaborators is aimed at developing a firmer understanding of the chemistry taking place in these incredibly complex environments. Prof. Sitz is also committed to providing unique, extensive research opportunities to undergraduate researchers working in his laboratory.