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    Few-cycle laser driven reaction nanoscopy on aerosolized silica nanoparticles
    ([London] : Nature Publishing Group UK, 2019) Rupp, Philipp; Burger, Christian; Kling, Nora G; Kübel, Matthias; Mitra, Sambit; Rosenberger, Philipp; Weatherby, Thomas; Saito, Nariyuki; Itatani, Jiro; Alnaser, Ali S.; Raschke, Markus B.; Rühl, Eckart; Schlander, Annika; Gallei, Markus; Seiffert, Lennart; Fennel, Thomas; Bergues, Boris; Kling, Matthias F.
    Nanoparticles offer unique properties as photocatalysts with large surface areas. Under irradiation with light, the associated near-fields can induce, enhance, and control molecular adsorbate reactions on the nanoscale. So far, however, there is no simple method available to spatially resolve the near-field induced reaction yield on the surface of nanoparticles. Here we close this gap by introducing reaction nanoscopy based on three-dimensional momentum-resolved photoionization. The technique is demonstrated for the spatially selective proton generation in few-cycle laser-induced dissociative ionization of ethanol and water on SiO2 nanoparticles, resolving a pronounced variation across the particle surface. The results are modeled and reproduced qualitatively by electrostatic and quasi-classical mean-field Mie Monte-Carlo (M3C) calculations. Reaction nanoscopy is suited for a wide range of isolated nanosystems and can provide spatially resolved ultrafast reaction dynamics on nanoparticles, clusters, and droplets.
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    Control of coordinatively unsaturated Zr sites in ZrO2 for efficient C–H bond activation
    ([London] : Nature Publishing Group UK, 2018) Zhang, Yaoyuan; Zhao, Yun; Otroshchenko, Tatiana; Lund, Henrik; Pohl, Marga-Martina; Rodemerck, Uwe; Linke, David; Jiao, Haijun; Jiang, Guiyuan; Kondratenko, Evgenii V.
    Due to the complexity of heterogeneous catalysts, identification of active sites and the ways for their experimental design are not inherently straightforward but important for tailored catalyst preparation. The present study reveals the active sites for efficient C–H bond activation in C1–C4 alkanes over ZrO2 free of any metals or metal oxides usually catalysing this reaction. Quantum chemical calculations suggest that two Zr cations located at an oxygen vacancy are responsible for the homolytic C–H bond dissociation. This pathway differs from that reported for other metal oxides used for alkane activation, where metal cation and neighbouring lattice oxygen form the active site. The concentration of anion vacancies in ZrO2 can be controlled through adjusting the crystallite size. Accordingly designed ZrO2 shows industrially relevant activity and durability in non-oxidative propane dehydrogenation and performs superior to state-of-the-art catalysts possessing Pt, CrOx, GaOx or VOx species.
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    Probing multiphoton light-induced molecular potentials
    ([London] : Nature Publishing Group UK, 2020) Kübel, M.; Spanner, M.; Dube, Z.; Naumov, A.Yu.; Chelkowski, S.; Bandrauk, A.D.; Vrakking, M.J.J.; Corkum, P.B.; Villeneuve, D.M.; Staudte, A.
    The strong coupling between intense laser fields and valence electrons in molecules causes distortions of the potential energy hypersurfaces which determine the motion of the nuclei and influence possible reaction pathways. The coupling strength varies with the angle between the light electric field and valence orbital, and thereby adds another dimension to the effective molecular potential energy surface, leading to the emergence of light-induced conical intersections. Here, we demonstrate that multiphoton couplings can give rise to complex light-induced potential energy surfaces that govern molecular behavior. In the laser-induced dissociation of H2+, the simplest of molecules, we measure a strongly modulated angular distribution of protons which has escaped prior observation. Using two-color Floquet theory, we show that the modulations result from ultrafast dynamics on light-induced molecular potentials. These potentials are shaped by the amplitude, duration and phase of the dressing fields, allowing for manipulating the dissociation dynamics of small molecules.