Low energy, mass-selected ion beam deposition into thin inert gas matrices at cryogenic temperatures is used to generate samples for vibrational spectroscopy under conditions in which coupling to the environment/substrate can be strictly controlled. We generate the ions using a variety of different sources including electrospray ionization. These are mass selected and decelerated for (co)deposition onto a surface mounted on a helium cryostat. The subsequently matrix-isolated species are studied using (polarization modulated) infra-red reflection/absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRAS) as well as surface-enhanced Raman spectroscoy (SERS) with periodically structured substrates. Presently, we are characterizing fullerenes in various charge states within argon matrices.

"Properties of non-IPR fullerene films versus size of the building blocks”, Daniel Löffler, Seyithan Ulas, Stefan-Sven Jester, Patrick Weis, Artur Böttcher and Manfred M. Kappes, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2010, 12, 10671-10684.