Degree of aggregation of indocyanine green in aqueous solutions determined by Mie scattering

Indocyanine green in water and aqueous NaCl solutions forms large J-aggregates. The degree of aggregation is estimated by Rayleigh scattering and Mie scattering analysis. The refractive index of the aggregates responsible for scattering is deduced from an aggregate absorption cross-section spectrum using the Kramers-Kronig relations. The average degree of aggregation for indocyanine green in water is found to be of the order of 10⁷ while it rises to 10⁹ for indocyanine green in 0.01 molar aqueous NaCl solution.     

Optical imaging of pattern formation: reflection anisotropy microscopy applied to globally coupled oscillatory CO-oxidation

A reflection anisotropy microscope (RAM) creates the contrast in its images from a change in the polarization orientation of reflected light from a surface. This may stem from local variations of the reconstruction of a surface, being initiated by changes in an adsorption layer. The advantages and disadvantages of a recently improved RAM versus other optical imaging techniques are discussed. We demonstrate the unique features of RAM and present the first experimental findings of so called 2pi phase kinks in the globally coupled CO-oxidation on Pt(110).     

Nonlinear optical study of palladium Schiff base complex using femtosecond differential optical Kerr gate and Z-scan techniques

A femtosecond differential optical Kerr gate (DOKG) and Z-scan techniques, have been applied to investigate the third-order optical nonlinearity of composite film of the coordination complex [PdLPPh₃] (L=N-(2-pyridyl)-N′-(salicylidene)hydrazine, PPh₃=triphenylphosphine). Film exhibits superior nonlinear optical properties in the near-infrared spectral region. The nonlinear response time and third-order nonlinear optical susceptibility of complex were found to be≤90 fs and 3.9×10^?10 esu, respectively. The Z-scan result shows that saturable absorption property of the film and its nonlinear absorption coefficient of the sample was found to be ?23 cm/GW.     

Imaging of dynamic processes on surfaces by light

This work focuses on imaging of dynamic processes on surfaces, using light to illuminate the area of interest. The methods discussed here are those in which the photoelectrons emitted from or the light reflected off the surface are measured. While the first approach is well-known since electron microscopy was invented and has been used in surface science applications for a decade, genuine optical microscope methods using polarized light were first developed in 1995 for imaging surface reactions.

The results discussed here are from different fields of surface research. These include the imaging of adsorption phenomena, surface diffusion and growth processes. The main emphasis will be on pattern formation of surface reactions under strictly controlled parameters. The most recent techniques expand the range of observable pressure conditions by many orders of magnitude, thus bridging the pressure gap in imaging surface reactions.     

Imaging pattern formation: Bridging the pressure gap

Two surface-sensitive optical imaging methods, Ellipso-Microscopy for surface Imaging (EMSI) and Reflection Anisotropy Microscopy (RAM) are introduced. They allow imaging of pattern formation on surfaces, e.g., due to submonolayer coverages of adsorbates, at any arbitrary pressure.In spatio-temporal pattern formation during heterogeneously catalysed reactions this bridges the pressure gap between well-defined UHV experiments and real catalysis. For the CO oxidation on Pt(110), the parameter space for pattern formation was extended up to 100 mbar, i.e., by 5 orders of magnitude compared to earlier investigations by Photo-Emission Electron Microscopy (PEEM) which had to be conducted below 10^–3 mbar. With increasing pressure, the synchronisation mechanisms responsible for the observed pattern showed a gradual shift from reaction-diffusion to thermal-kinetic coupling unveiling previously unseen features of pattern formation in catalysis.     

A matrix-induced change in the electronic ground state of nickel atoms isolated in rare gases

Comparison of the absorption spectra for matrix-isolated Ni atoms with gas-phase data reveals that the electronic ground-state configuration of the isolated atom can be changed by the matrix. While Ni in Ne has the same configuration as in the gas phase, namely 3d⁸4s² we find in Ar, Kr, and Xe the 3d⁹4s¹ configuration to be the ground state. The matrix-induced changes is explained by the repulsive matrix-dopant interaction, which is sufficiently lowered in the 3d⁹4s¹ configuration to overcompensate for the energy difference of 205 cm^?1 by which the 3d⁹4s¹ level lies above the 3d⁸4s² in the free atom.     

Femtosecond parametric generation in ZnGeP(2)

We report traveling-wave optical parametric generation in short (2-mm) ZnGeP(2) samples with reduced anomalous absorption, using femtosecond pump pulses near 2 mum . The signal and the idler waves generated could be tuned from 2.5 to 10 mum , and they extend the tunability of the beta-barium borate optical parametric generator used as a pump source to the mid-infrared. At a single-pass internal conversion efficiency of 2.5% we estimate pulse durations of 75 fs (signal near 3 mum) and 200 fs (idler near 6 mum).     

Generation of the fourth harmonic of a femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser

A high-repetition-rate femtosecond laser system operating, for the first time to our knowledge, in the spectral region near 200 nm is described. Frequency quadrupling of a mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser results in maximum average powers of 6 mW (165-fs pulses) and 15 mW (340-fs pulses) at 82 MHz. The shortest wavelength achieved is 193.7 nm.