9311337 Scherer In this Small Grant for Exploratory Research Project in the Experimental Physical Chemistry Program of the Chemistry Division, Scherer will interface a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) with a femtosecond-pulse laser system in order to investigate the temporal and spatial properties of atomic structures on surfaces and at interfaces. Coherence properties of single molecules and particles adsorbed or chemisorbed to conducting subtrates will be measured. Pump-probe methods will be used to obtain tens of femtoseconds time resolution of the photophysical dynamics of the adsorbate while the STM serves as the molecule and site-specific detector of the optically induced changes in conductivity. %%% Through the results of experiments conducted under this research program Scherer will obtain a better understanding on a microscopic level of the fundamental properties of molecules confined on surfaces. The information and broader perspective obtained from these studies have the potential for directly observing and controlling chemical processes at the atomic level. This in turn has implications for nanoscale fabrication of materials and other processes which occur at the interface between, for example, a gas and a solid. ***
