Dissipative tunneling rates through the incorporation of first-principles electronic friction in instanton rate theory. I. Theory

Y. Litman, E. S. Pos, C. L. Box, R. Martinazzo, R. J. Maurer, M. Rossi J. Chem. Phys. 156, 194106 (2022)

"Hydrogen chemistry at surfaces can involve nonadiabatic effects (NAEs) and quantum nuclear effects (NQEs). The theoretical modeling of such reactions presents a formidable challenge for theory. In this work, we derive a theoretical framework that captures both NQEs and NAEs and, due to its high efficiency, can be applied to first-principles calculations of reaction rates in high-dimensional realistic systems. More specifically, we develop a method that we coin ring polymer instanton with explicit friction, starting from the ring polymer instanton formalism applied to a system–bath model. In this first part, we describe the theory and derivation of this approach."

Plasmonic enhancement of molecular hydrogen dissociation on metallic magnesium nanoclusters

Oscar Douglas-Gallardo, Connor L. Box, Reinhard J. Maurer, Nanoscale 13, 11058-11068 (2021)

"The optical and catalytic properties of magnesium nanoclusters are characterized in the context of plasmonic catalysis. Our Time-Dependent DFTB and DFT simulations show that plasmonic enhancement of hydrogen dissociation and evolution on magnesium nanoclusters is viable."

Determining the effect of hot electron dissipation on molecular scattering experiments at metal surfaces

C. L. Box, Y. Zhang, R. Yin, B. Jiang, R. J. Maurer, JACS Au 1, 164-173 (2020)

"Vibrational state-to-state scattering of NO on Au(111) provides a testing ground for developing various nonadiabatic theories, including electronic friction theory. This system is often cited as the prime example for the breakdown of electronic friction theory, a very efficient model accounting for dissipative forces on metal-adsorbed molecules due to the creation of electron-hole-pair excitations in the metal. Here we present a comprehensive quantitative analysis of the performance of molecular dynamics with electronic friction (MDEF) in describing vibrational state-to-state scattering of NO on Au(111) and connect directly to fundamental approximations. Our analysis provides a firm baseline for the future development of nonadiabatic dynamics methods to tackle problems in surface chemistry and photocatalysis."

A symmetry adapted high dimensional neural network representation of electronic friction tensor of adsorbates on metals

Yaolong Zhang, Reinhard J. Maurer, Bin Jiang, J. Chem. Phys., just accepted (2019)

"In this work, we develop a new symmetry-adapted neural network representation of electronic friction, based on our recently proposed embedded atom neural network (EANN) framework. Unlike previous methods, our new approach can readily include both molecular and surface degrees of freedom, regardless of the type of surface. Tests on the H2+Ag(111) system show that this approach yields an accurate, efficient, and continuous representation of electronic friction, making it possible to perform large scale TDPT-based MDEF simulations to study both adiabatic and nonadiabatic energy dissipation in a unified framework."

Hot-electron effects during reactive scattering of H2 from Ag(111): assessing the sensitivity to initial conditions, coupling magnitude, and electronic temperature

Yaolong Zhang, Reinhard J. Maurer, Hua Guo and Bin Jiang, Faraday Discuss. 214, 105-121 (2019)

"Using molecular dynamics simulations with electronic friction, we systematically study the effect of hot electrons on measurable state-to-state scattering probabilities of molecular hydrogen from a (111) surface of silver. We find that dynamic scattering results and the ensuing energy loss are highly sensitive to the magnitude of electronic friction."

Hot-electron effects during reactive scattering of H2 from Ag(111): the interplay between mode-specific electronic friction and the potential energy landscape

Y.Zhang, R.J.Maurer, H.Guo, B.Jiang, Chem. Sci. 10, 1089-1097 (2019)

"The breakdown of the Born-Oppenheimer approximation gives rise to nonadiabatic effects in gas-surface reactions at metal surfaces. However, for a given reaction, it remains unclear which factors quantitatively determine whether these effects measurably contribute to surface reactivity in catalysis and photo/electrochemistry. Here, we systematically investigate hot electron effects during H2 scattering from Ag(111) using electronic friction theory."

Electron-Hole-Pair-Induced Vibrational Energy Relaxation of Rhenium Catalysts on Gold Surfaces

Aimin Ge, Benjamin Rudshteyn, Jingyi Zhu, Reinhard J. Maurer, VIctor S. Batista, and Tianquan Lian, J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 9, 406-412 (2018)

"Using a combination of time-resolved vibrational spectroscopy and Density Functional Theory, we study the vibrational relaxation mechanisms of a metal-adsorbed reduction catalyst."

Mode specific electronic friction in dissociative chemisorption on metal surfaces: H2 on Ag(111)

Reinhard J. Maurer, Bin Jiang, Hua Guo, John C. Tully, Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 256001 (2017)

"Using nonadiabatic ab-initio molecular dynamics, we study how electronic friction affects mode-dependent energy loss and reaction outcomes during dissociative chemisorption of molecular Hydrogen."

Ab-initio tensorial electronic friction for molecules on metal surfaces: nonadiabatic vibrational relaxation

Reinhard J. Maurer, Mikhail Askerka, Victor S. Batista, John C. Tully, Phys. Rev. B. 94, 115432 (2016)

We present our efficient and robust ab-initio implementation of tensorial electronic friction and apply it to calculate vibrational lifetimes.

Role of Tensorial Electronic Friction in Energy Transfer at Metal Surfaces

Mikhail Askerka, Reinhard J. Maurer, Victor S. Batista, John C. Tully, Phys. Rev. Lett. 116, 217601 (2016)
Editor’s Suggestion

We use time-dependent perturbation theory to calculate the full electronic friction tensor and study its relevance in the simulation of dynamics at surfaces.