Abstract

Understanding surface mediated reactions involves the correlation of local electronic and topological structure with reactivity. Further, an improved understanding of localized reactivity would benefit from dynamical studies.¹ The study of complex interfaces and mechanisms of electrochemical reactivity would certainly benefit from such insights. Towards this end, a new experimental technique that is a promising approach for simultaneous spatial and temporal resolution of optically initiated dynamics at interfaces is presented. The method, based on the integration of femtosecond-optical spectroscopy and scanning probe microscopy (FOS-SPM), is capable of spatial localization of optically induced phenomenon at interfaces. Spatially localized, time resolved spectroscopic measurements are achieved via coupling of the metal SPM tip to an optical field at the interface.²,³ FOS-SPM has been shown to be capable of identifying and differentiating between different opto-electronic mechanisms, specifically multi-photon ionization (MPI) and optical rectification.⁴ Preliminary results on the application of FOS-SPM to study localized surface reactivity are presented.

© 1996 Optical Society of America