On titanium oxide catalyst, certain atoms and molecules flee when light appears
Tuesday, March 18, 2014 - 05:30
in Physics & Chemistry
Long thought to be unresponsive to ultraviolet light, negatively charged oxygen ions stuck to the catalyst's surface, known as oxygen adatoms, actually respond to light, according to scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). The researchers made this discovery by coating the surface of common catalyst titanium dioxide with krypton reporters. When light strikes the catalyst, the oxygen adatoms become electronically excited and knock the krypton off the surface. The alteration occurs because the adatoms react with electrons and/or holes created by the ultraviolet light.