Dynamics of electron transfer processes in molecular systems at surfaces |
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| Michael Thoss | |
| Technische Universität München | |
| Dynamical processes involving the transfer or transport of electrons are ubiquitous in many areas of physics, chemistry and biology. Among the great variety of different types of electron transfer reactions, electron transfer processes of molecular systems at semiconductor or metal surfaces have been of particular interest recently.
In this talk, two types of surface electron transfer reactions are considered. The first part of the talk addresses electron transfer processes at dye-semiconductor interfaces as an example for an ultrafast photoinduced reaction. Employing quantum dynamical simulations, various aspects of these reactions are investigated including electronic population dynamics, vibrational wave-packet motion associated with the ultrafast electron transfer process as well as the mutual influence of electronic and nuclear dynamics. In the second part, electron transport through single molecules that are bound to metal electrodes is considered. Based on a first-principles modeling and transport calculations, the influence of the nuclear degrees of freedom of the molecular bridge on the conductance properties of the junctions as well as the nonequilibrium character of the process is studied. |