Structure and Electronic Properties of Ni Nanoparticles Deposited on Ceria Thin Films

Hydrogen fuel is a clean and renewable energy resource, which can be used to resolve energy shortage crisis. Ni is one of the popular catalysts in the ethanol reaction for hydrogen production due to its excellent reactivity. Dispersing the Ni on ceria supports can promote its catalytic. To fully understand the chemistry of ceria-supported Ni nanoparticles as potential hydrogen production catalysts, it is important to understand their physical and electronic properties at the fundamental level. In this undergraduate research project, the structure and size of Ni nanoparticles as well as their interactions with ceria were examined under ultrahigh vacuum system using Ni/ceria model systems consisting of Ni particles vapor-deposited on well-ordered reducible CeOx (111) (1.5