Photoelectron spectroscopy of transition-metal clusters: Correlation of valence electronic structure to reactivity

Journal Article · Wed Feb 15 00:00:00 EST 1995 · Physical Review, B: Condensed Matter; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.51.4668· OSTI ID:6608662

Conceicao, J; Laaksonen, R T; Wang, L; Guo, T; Nordlander, P; Smalley, R E ^[1]

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1. Department of Chemistry and Physics and Rice Quantum Institute, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77251 (United States)

The photoelectron spectra and the reactivity of H[sub 2] with Fe, Co, and Ni clusters have been studied as a function of cluster size for clusters ranging from 5 to 26 atoms in size. It is shown that the variation of the reactivity correlates with the variation of the difference between the ionization potential and the electron affinity of the clusters. This finding is rationalized by using a simple model in which the probability of H[sub 2] chemisorption on the cluster is proportional to the magnitude of an entrance channel barrier caused by Pauli repulsion between H[sub 2] and the cluster. It is argued that the magnitude of this barrier is proportional to the promotion energy of an electron from the frontier orbital of the cluster to the lowest unoccupied [ital d] state of the cluster.

• OSTI ID: 6608662
• Journal Information: Physical Review, B: Condensed Matter; (United States), Vol. 51:7; ISSN 0163-1829
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
COBALT
PHOTOELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY
IRON
NICKEL
ATOMIC CLUSTERS
CHEMISORPTION
HYDROGEN
IONIZATION POTENTIAL
REACTIVITY
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
ELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY
ELEMENTS
METALS
NONMETALS
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SORPTION
SPECTROSCOPY
360104* - Metals & Alloys- Physical Properties