Dr. John T. Yates, Jr.

        John T. Yates, Jr. is Professor of Chemistry and a Shannon Fellow at the University of Virginia. Professor Yates received his B.S. degree from Juniata College and his Ph.D. in physical chemistry from M.I.T. Following three years as Assistant Professor at Antioch College, he joined the National Bureau of Standards, first as a NRC Postdoctoral Research Fellow and then, from 1965 until 1982, as a member of its scientific staff. Professor Yates joined the University of Pittsburgh in 1982 as the first R.K. Mellon Professor of Chemistry and as the Founding Director of the new University of Pittsburgh Surface Science Center. In November 2006, he joined the faculty of the Department of Chemistry at The University of Virginia as a Shannon Fellow.
        Professor Yates' research in the fields of surface chemistry and physics, including both the structure and spectroscopy of surface species, the dynamics of surface processes, and the development of new methods for research in surface chemistry, has put him at the forefront of an exciting rapidly growing field of science. At UVA, he continues active research in surface chemistry and photochemistry as well as exploring connections to astrochemistry in the solar system and beyond. He is the author of nearly 700 published and submitted papers. He serves on the editorial boards of six journals and two book series in surface science and catalysis, was Associate Editor of the ACS journal, Langmuir, served on the Advisory Board of Chemical & Engineering News, and is on the International Advisory Board of Chemistry World. He is the co-editor of two books, co author of "The Surface Scientists Guide to Organometallic Chemistry," and has written the books "Experimental Innovations in Surface Science" and "Molecular Physical Chemistry for Engineers."
        Professor Yates has received many honors and awards, including the Stratton Award for Distinguished Research (NBS), the Gold Medal by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Kendall Award in Colloid or Surface Chemistry (ACS), and the Arthur W. Adamson Award for Distinguished Service in the Advancement of Surface Chemistry (ACS). In 2007, the ACS presented him with the prestigious Peter Debye Award in Physical Chemistry.
       He has been active in AVS, APS and ACS affairs for the last 25 years, including being a past member of the AVS Boards of Directors and Trustees, past Chairman of the Surface Science Division of the AVS (for the second time), past chairman, APS Division of Chemical Physics, and the past chairman of the ACS Division of Colloid and Surface Chemistry. He has organized a number of symposia for ACS National Meetings, APS National Meetings, and has been Chairman of three Gordon Research Conferences.

Observation of Chemical Reactions on Surfaces Using STM - Watching Individual Molecules Do Their Molecular Dances

The scanning tunneling microscope provides spatial resolution able to observe the molecular shape and site location of single molecules adsorbed on surfaces. I will show how this technique has been able to observe a free-radical type of chain reaction between self assembled molecules, where as many as 10 molecules are involved in the chain process. Chain reactions have been recognized since the early days (1920's) of gas phase chemical kinetics research. This work is the first to see the individual molecular steps of the chain reaction for adsorbed species.

Reference: P. Maksymovych, D. C. Sorescu, K. D. Jordan and J. T. Yates, Jr., Science 322, 1664 (2008), December 12, 2008