SPP 1153:  Clusters at Surfaces: Electron Structure and Magnetism

• Subject Area: Physics
• Term: from 2003 to 2009
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 5471936

Experimental and theoretical investigations have shown that the electronic and magnetic properties of atomic clusters in the gas phase differ significantly from those of the respective bulk materials. Technical applications of clusters require deposition on supporting surfaces or embedding in a medium. The resulting system of clusters plus substrate or environment comprise new functional elements on the nanometer scale which makes them suitable for building new materials with tailored properties. Well-defined surfaces may serve as model systems to study the interactions of clusters with their environment. Presently, only few studies of such systems are available which, nevertheless, have demonstrated deviations of the electronic and geometrical properties of deposited clusters from those of the free species which vary from slight modification to complete change. This is the starting point of the Priority Programme: Activities of the surface science and cluster communities, separated up to now, are bundled to study electronics and magnetism of clusters. E.g., charge transport measurements through single clusters or clusters arrays can explore quantum effects and their possible interference with the nearby surface, which is an interesting issue for possible applications. Moreover, time-of-flight photoelectron spectroscopy with synchrotron radiation enables direct and detailed exploration of the electronic and spin structures of deposited clusters. Next, the chemical reactivity of mass-selected clusters is strongly connected to electronic features. Finally, there are several high-level theories which are very helpful in addressing these topics.The focus of the Priority Programme are electronic and magnetic properties of clusters that are governed by size and quantum effects. In particular, chemical, catalytic processes with large particles, lithographic preparation and growth processes on surfaces are not in the center of the programme.

• DFG Programme: Priority Programmes
• International Connection: France, Russia

Projects

• Cavity ring-down spectroscopy on size-selected, supported clusters (Applicant Heiz, Ulrich )
• Dynamics of clusters at surfaces (Applicant Reinhard, Paul-Gerhard )
• Electronic structure and magnetism of surface supported 3D and 4D Metal Clusters (Applicant Enders, Axel )
• Electronic structure and optical properties of transition metal doped silicon clusters on surfaces - Building blocks for cluster assembled materials (Applicant Lau, Tobias )
• Electronic structure calculations of sub-nanometer oxide-supported transition metal particles (Applicant Rösch, Notker )
• Electronic structure of transition metal clusters on metal surfaces: quantum chemistry and Green`s function approach (Applicant Hübner, Wolfgang )
• Ferromagnetic clusters on surfaces: correlation of structural, electronic and magnetic properties probed by STM and SP-STS (Applicant Getzlaff, Mathias )
• Ferromagnetic clusters on surfaces: Size-dependent magnetic properties (Applicants Bansmann, Joachim ;  Kleibert, Armin )
• Homochiral Magnetic Structures in Deposited Clusters (Applicant Blügel, Stefan )
• Influence of spin orbit coupling on the magnetic and spectroscopic properties of supported transition metal clusters (Applicant Ebert, Hubert )
• Koordinatorantrag (Applicant Meiwes-Broer, Karl-Heinz )
• Magnetic properties and Kondo behavior of deposited clusters beyond density-functional theory (Applicant Blügel, Stefan )
• Magnetic properties of small deposited 4d and 4f transition metal clusters (Applicant Wurth, Wilfried )
• Magnetism of size selected, deposited transition metal and alloy clusters (Applicant Fauth, Kai )
• Magnetism, structure and interactions on the atomic scale: supported metal clusters on metal surfaces (Applicant Stepanyuk, Valeri )
• MIES-studies on size-selected clusters deposited on oxide surfaces (Applicant Heiz, Ulrich )
• Multiscale modeling of supported metal clusters: Exploring the electronic structure of nano-catalysts (Applicant Moseler, Michael )
• Optical properties of silver clusters and their complexes with biomolecules at surfaces (Applicant Bonacic-Koutecky, Vlasta )
• Platelets and inorganic fullerenes on metal surfaces (Applicant Ganteför, Gerd )
• Platelets and inorganic fullerenes on metal surfaces (Applicant Seifert, Gotthard )
• Scanning tunneling spectroscopy of supported clusters (Applicant Berndt, Richard )
• Spectroscopy and dynamics of electron excitations of supported metal clusters (Applicant Aeschlimann, Martin )
• Spectroscopy of large metal clusters: comparison between clusters at surfaces and free clusters (Applicants Hövel, Heinz ;  von Issendorff, Bernd )
• Spektroskopie von großen Metallclustern: Vergleich zwischen Clustern auf Oberflächen und freien Clustern (Applicant von Issendorff, Bernd )
• Theoretical studies of structural and energetic properties of metal clusters on surfaces (Applicant Springborg, Michael )
• Theoretical study of energy and charge transfer in single clusters and cluster arrays at surfaces (Applicant Garcia, Martin Ezequiel )
• Time-resolved photoemission from mass-selected metal clusters and their complexes with biomolecules at insulating surfaces (Applicant Bernhardt, Thorsten M. )
• Tunneling spectroscopy on deposited silver clusters (Applicant Meiwes-Broer, Karl-Heinz )

• Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Karl-Heinz Meiwes-Broer
• Deputy: Professor Dr. Richard Berndt