Experimental studies of chemical reaction dynamics at the gas/solid interface. We combine laser, molecular beams, and ultra-high vacuum surface science to probe surface chemistry under highly controlled conditions at the molecular level.

In our laboratory, we study the elementary steps of chemical reactions between gas-phase molecules and solid surfaces such as for example the chemisorption of methane on a nickel catalyst. We use molecular beams and laser radiation to probe the reaction process at a molecular level by performing quantum state resolved reactivity measurements. The results of these experiments provide stringent tests for theoretical models of gas-surface chemistry which is of importance for many industrial and technological processes.