This is a Small Grants for Exploratory Research (SGER) effort. The work is a pilot experiment to determine the feasibility of using a virtual reality environment with a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) for real-time viewing and manipulation of atoms and molecules. Recent advances make it possible to link a STM to force feedback and head-mounted display system for new types of scientific instruments. These instruments will give the user the subjective experience of presence at the atomic scale on a physical surface. Scanning can be at video rates for real-time visualization. Force feedback provides the capability for tactile exploration of the contours of the electronic environment presented at the atomic, molecular and substrate surfaces. Atoms and molecular fragments can be manipulated interactively with the probe. The same probe can cut molecular bonds and bring fragments together for reactions. The products of resulting reactions can be explored to determine their morphology and other characteristics. The STM collaborators are Dr. R. Stanley William and graduate students from the Chemistry Department of UCLA.
