Scanning tunneling microscopy of temperature dependent molecular processes at the solution-solid interface

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Professor Kerry W. Hipps of Washington State University is supported by the Chemical Measurement and Imaging (CMI) Program in the Division of Chemistry to develop a temperature-controlled sample chamber which facilitates variable-temperature STM measurements at the solid liquid interface. The newly developed STM facility will be used to study several basic surface science problems, including the temperature dependence of the structures and formation kinetics of bimolecular physical adsorbates, the temperature dependence of phase transformations in covalently attached monolayers, the mechanisms and kinetics of chemical transformations of preformed organic adlayers, and the role of hydrogen bonding in weakly bound self-assembled structures. The ability to see the ordering and re-ordering of molecules on a surface at different temperatures will significantly impact our understanding of these elementary chemical processes, which are of great importance in many fields, including chemical catalysis, sensor development, solar cells and self-assembly in biological systems. Students will be trained in cutting edge research methods, and WSU outreach programs will be exploited to help Hispanic and Native American students become acquainted with science and math.