Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 2 September 1994:
Vol. 265. no. 5177, pp. 1415 - 1418
DOI: 10.1126/science.265.5177.1415
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

Articles

Nanocatalysis by the Tip of a Scanning Tunneling Microscope Operating Inside a Reactor Cell

B. J. McIntyre 1, M. Salmeron 1, and G. A. Somorjai 1

1 Center for Advanced Materials, Material Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, and Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.

The platinum-rhodium tip of a scanning tunneling microscope that operates inside of an atmospheric-pressure chemical reactor cell has been used to locally rehydrogenate carbonaceous fragments deposited on the (111) surface of platinum. The carbon fragments were produced by partial dehydrogenation of propylene. The reactant gas environment inside the cell consisted of pure H2 or a 1:9 mixture of CH3CHCH2 and H2 at 300 kelvin. The platinum-rhodium tip acted as a catalyst after activation by short voltage pulses. In this active state, the clusters in the area scanned by the tip were reacted away with very high spatial resolution.

Submitted on April 20, 1994
Accepted on July 7, 1994


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Single-Bond Formation and Characterization with a Scanning Tunneling Microscope.
H. J. Lee and W. Ho (1999)
Science 286, 1719-1722
   Abstract »    Full Text »
A Strategy for the Chemical Synthesis of Nanostructures.
W. T. Muller, D. L. Klein, T. Lee, J. Clarke, P. L. McEuen, and P. G. Schultz (1995)
Science 268, 272-273
   Abstract »    PDF »
Physics Festival Brightens Rainy San Jose.
J. Travis and J. Travis (1995)
Science 268, 30-31
   Abstract »    PDF »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)