Absorbance change mOD

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Dependence of Rates of Interfacial Electron
Transfer on Anchoring Group
Debra L. Mohler, Department of Chemistry and
Biochemistry,James Madison University
Interfacial electron transfer (ET) from molecular
adsorbates and metal or semiconductor
nanoparticles/thin films is an essential process
in applications including photocatalysis, solar
energy conversion, and photography. The emerging
field of heterogeneous photocatalysis is of
particular interest for its potential to employ
green methods in functionalizing
petroleum-derived materials and in developing new
synthetic methods. Because the rate of ET is
often a key determinant of efficiency in these
systems, the understanding of this process is
essential for their design. We have prepared
seminconductor nanoparticles coated with
molecules that each contain a different group
anchoring it to the nanoparticle and these
anchoring groups dramatically change the rate of
ET. Calculations reveal that these rates
correlate with electronic coupling in molecular
orbitals, which can be thought of the highway for
the electrons to move from the dye to the
nanoparticle.
Absorbance change (mOD)