The R. N. Compton Research Group at the University of Tennessee

Introduction

The Compton Group Chemical Physics Laboratory is housed in the new Science and Engineering Research Facility (SERF) on the campus of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. The SERF Building is located between the Chemistry and Physics Departments on the Hill at UT.  This is where the Compton Group integrates Chemistry and Physics into multidisciplenary research.  Research is facilitated by the availability of numerous departmental instruments (Dilor Raman Spectrometer, Ar-ion pumped Ti:Saphire laser, Perkin Elmer ESCA PES, 600 MHZ NMR spectrometer, Mass Spectrometer Facility, and three FTIR spectrometers.  Our Chemical Physics Laboratories have three Quanta-Ray Nd:Yag pumped dye lasers (PDL-2) with wavelength extensions (WEX) and two Continium OPO lasers (Sunlight with WEX and Single Longitudinal Mode Mirage).  We also have in our labs a new high resolution Bomen DA8 FTIR and a Scanning Tunneling Microscope (STM).  Experiments are carried out using four time-of-flight mass spectrometers (one being a new high resolution Trochoidal electron impact ionization TOF Mass Spectrometer with a nozzle jet source), a high resolution (10 mev) 30 cm radius Photoelectron spectrometer employing a He-I VUV lamp, optical heat pipes, and many other experimental setups.  

Collaborative research is carried out also at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory with various groups.  These include small angle neutron scattering at the High Flux Isotope Reactor (Dr. George Wignal), work with the High Temperature Materials Laboratory (Dr. Larry Allard), studies of the origins of Homochirality in nature at the DOSAR and ORELA facilities, and magnetic circular dichroism in the Solid State Division.