Solvation dynamics of electrons in aqueous environments

Hydrated electrons are ubiquitous in nature and are a source of radical reactants that are central to a range of disciplines. Here, the production of such hydrated electrons will be studied following excitation of anions in two different environments. The first environment is bulk water and the production and recombination dynamics will be studied by transient absorption spectroscopy. The second environment is the water/air and water/oil interface, where the dynamics will be probed by time-resolved second harmonic generation. The main aim of the latter part is to understand how the solvation dynamics differ at or across interfaces and how the free energy of bringing an electron to a water interface changes as the interface changes.