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Tiefenthaler L, Ameixa J, Martini P, Albertini S, Ballauf L, Zankl M, Goulart M, Laimer F, von Haeften K, Zappa F, Scheier P. An intense source for cold cluster ions of a specific composition. THE REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 2020; 91:033315. [PMID: 32260000 DOI: 10.1063/1.5133112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2019] [Accepted: 02/26/2020] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
The demand for nanoscale materials of ultra-high purity and narrow size distribution is addressed. Clusters of Au, C60, H2O, and serine are produced inside helium nanodroplets using a combination of ionization, mass filtering, collisions with atomic or molecular vapor, and electrostatic extraction, in a specific and novel sequence. The helium droplets are produced in an expansion of cold helium gas through a nozzle into vacuum. The droplets are ionized by electron bombardment and subjected to a mass filter. The ionic and mass-selected helium droplets are then guided through a vacuum chamber filled with atomic or molecular vapor where they collide and "pick up" the vapor. The dopants then agglomerate inside the helium droplets around charge centers to singly charged clusters. Evaporation of the helium droplets is induced by collisions in a helium-filled radio frequency (RF)-hexapole, which liberates the cluster ions from the host droplets. The clusters are analyzed with a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. It is demonstrated that using this sequence, the size distribution of the dopant cluster ions is distinctly narrower compared to ionization after pickup. Likewise, the ion cluster beam is more intense. The mass spectra show, as well, that ion clusters of the dopants can be produced with only few helium atoms attached, which will be important for messenger spectroscopy. All these findings are important for the scientific research of clusters and nanoscale materials in general.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Tiefenthaler
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - J Ameixa
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - P Martini
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - S Albertini
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - L Ballauf
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - M Zankl
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - M Goulart
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - F Laimer
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - K von Haeften
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - F Zappa
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - P Scheier
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
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Tursic SA, Arts AM, Harruff-Miller BA, Lewis WK. Infrared spectroscopy of C 3-(H 2O) n and C 3-(D 2O) n complexes in helium droplets. J Chem Phys 2019; 150:124307. [PMID: 30927886 DOI: 10.1063/1.5067394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The C3 molecule is an important species with implications in combustion and astrochemistry, and much of the interest in this molecule is related to its interactions with other species found in these environments. We have utilized helium droplet beam techniques along with a recently developed carbon cluster evaporation source to assemble C3-(H2O)n and C3-(D2O)n complexes with n = 1-2 and to record their rovibrational spectra. We observe only a single isomer of the n = 1 complex, in agreement with theoretical predictions as well as data from earlier matrix isolation studies. The spectra of the n = 1 complex are consistent with the ab initio structure, which involves a nearly linear arrangement of CCC-HO atoms in the complex. The C3-H2O spectrum we obtain exhibits slight differences from the analogous C3-D2O spectrum, which we assign to a difference in linewidth between the two spectra. We have also examined the n = 2 species and obtained a structure that appears to be distinct from those observed in matrix isolation studies and, to our knowledge, has not been previously observed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott A Tursic
- U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, Aerospace Systems Directorate, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio 45433, USA
| | - Amanda M Arts
- U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, Aerospace Systems Directorate, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio 45433, USA
| | | | - William K Lewis
- U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, Aerospace Systems Directorate, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio 45433, USA
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Jena P, Sun Q. Super Atomic Clusters: Design Rules and Potential for Building Blocks of Materials. Chem Rev 2018; 118:5755-5870. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.7b00524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 302] [Impact Index Per Article: 50.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Puru Jena
- Physics Department, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia 23284-2000, United States
| | - Qiang Sun
- Physics Department, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia 23284-2000, United States
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Thomas BJ, Harruff-Miller BA, Lewis WK. Note: A simple detection method for helium droplet spectroscopy experiments. THE REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 2017; 88:016101. [PMID: 28147675 DOI: 10.1063/1.4973775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Helium droplet methods are currently established as a premier experimental technique for the production and spectroscopic study of novel clusters and complexes. Unfortunately, some of the essential equipment required to perform the experiments, such as the detector used to monitor photon-induced depletion of the helium droplet beam, can be relatively large, complex, and expensive. Most often this detector is a quadrupole mass spectrometer (QMS). In this report, we describe the development and evaluation of an extremely simple, straightforward, small, and inexpensive droplet beam detector for use in helium droplet spectroscopy experiments and compare its performance to that of a QMS by recording the infrared spectra of helium droplets doped with either 13CO2 or CD4.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brandon J Thomas
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Division of Pharmaceutical Analysis, St. Louis, Missouri 63110, USA
| | - Barbara A Harruff-Miller
- Energy Technology and Materials Division, University of Dayton Research Institute, Dayton, Ohio 45469, USA
| | - William K Lewis
- U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, Aerospace Systems Directorate, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio 45433, USA
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Thomas BJ, Harruff-Miller BA, Bunker CE, Lewis WK. Infrared spectroscopy of Mg-CO2 and Al-CO2 complexes in helium nanodroplets. J Chem Phys 2015; 142:174310. [PMID: 25956103 PMCID: PMC6910599 DOI: 10.1063/1.4919693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2015] [Accepted: 04/22/2015] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The catalytic reduction of CO2 to produce hydrocarbon fuels is a topic that has gained significant attention. Development of efficient catalysts is a key enabler to such approaches, and metal-based catalysts have shown promise towards this goal. The development of a fundamental understanding of the interactions between CO2 molecules and metal atoms is expected to offer insight into the chemistry that occurs at the active site of such catalysts. In the current study, we utilize helium droplet methods to assemble complexes composed of a CO2 molecule and a Mg or Al atom. High-resolution infrared (IR) spectroscopy and optically selected mass spectrometry are used to probe the structure and binding of the complexes, and the experimental observations are compared with theoretical results determined from ab initio calculations. In both the Mg-CO2 and Al-CO2 systems, two IR bands are obtained: one assigned to a linear isomer and the other assigned to a T-shaped isomer. In the case of the Mg-CO2 complexes, the vibrational frequencies and rotational constants associated with the two isomers are in good agreement with theoretical values. In the case of the Al-CO2 complexes, the vibrational frequencies agree with theoretical predictions; however, the bands from both structural isomers exhibit significant homogeneous broadening sufficient to completely obscure the rotational structure of the bands. The broadening is consistent with an upper state lifetime of 2.7 ps for the linear isomer and 1.8 ps for the T-shaped isomer. The short lifetime is tentatively attributed to a prompt photo-induced chemical reaction between the CO2 molecule and the Al atom comprising the complex.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Barbara A Harruff-Miller
- Energy Technology & Materials Division, University of Dayton Research Institute, Dayton, Ohio 45469, USA
| | - Christopher E Bunker
- Air Force Research Laboratory, Aerospace Systems Directorate, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio 45433, USA
| | - William K Lewis
- Air Force Research Laboratory, Aerospace Systems Directorate, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio 45433, USA
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Krasnokutski SA, Huisken F. Ultra-low-temperature reactions of C(3P0) atoms with benzene molecules in helium droplets. J Chem Phys 2014; 141:214306. [DOI: 10.1063/1.4902369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Serge A. Krasnokutski
- Laboratory Astrophysics Group of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy at the Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institute of Solid State Physics, Helmholtzweg 3, D-07743 Jena, Germany
| | - Friedrich Huisken
- Laboratory Astrophysics Group of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy at the Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institute of Solid State Physics, Helmholtzweg 3, D-07743 Jena, Germany
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