Electrochemistry under vibrational coupling with plasmons – ECvibraPlas

In this project, we propose to study electrochemical reactions under strong vibrational excitation of the molecules along the reaction path. For this purpose, we will design specific electrodes allowing to significantly concentrate the infrared excitation at the surface where the electrochemical reaction will take place: bidimensional gold ultrathin films, densely packed gold nanoparticle monolayer and Au micro-antennas all deposited on silicon wafer. When these electrodes are irradiated in specific conditions by infrared light, plasmons in the infrared range will be excited enhancing the electromagnetic field at the electrode surface. The plasmon energy will be tuned to match the vibration modes of the molecules involved in the electrochemical reactions. Two reactions of interest for the energy transition, will be studied: oxygen evolution reaction for which the vibrational coupling may modify the reaction rate and the rate-limiting step, and carbon dioxide reduction for which vibrational coupling may modify the main reaction products. In each case, we expect that the determination of the reaction kinetics and main products as a function of the vibrational excitation energy will shed light on the electrochemical reaction mechanism.