1. Local investigation of electron-induced processes in water-metal systems
- Author
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Karl-Heinz Rieder, Heiko Gawronski, Michael Mehlhorn, and Karina Morgenstern
- Subjects
Materials science ,business.industry ,Diffusion ,Electron ,Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics ,Amorphous solid ,law.invention ,Condensed Matter::Materials Science ,Optics ,law ,Chemical physics ,Molecular vibration ,Amorphous ice ,Molecule ,Physics::Chemical Physics ,Crystallization ,business ,Quantum tunnelling - Abstract
Electrons tunnelling inelastically in a scanning tunnelling microscope have been used to induce the diffusion of water monomers adsorbed on the (111) faces of Ag, Cu, and Au via electrons coupling to vibrational modes of the molecules. Electrons of higher energies transform amorphous water clusters into crystalline clusters. At energies above 1.6 eV, the water molecules within the clusters are dissociated only after crystallization of the amorphous ice clusters. When the energy is sufficient to populate an anti-bonding orbital at 3 V the surface is oxidized.
- Published
- 2004
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