Surface electron dynamics in hematite (α-Fe 2 O 3 ): correlation between ultrafast surface electron trapping and small polaron formation

occur within ∼660 fs. The photoexcitation of hematite at 400 nm initially leads to an electronically-delocalized ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) state, which subsequently evolves into a surface localized LMCT state. Comparison of the charge carrier dynamics for single and polycrystalline samples shows that the observed dynamics are negligibly influenced by grain boundaries and surface defects. Rather, correlation between experimental results and spectral simulations reveals that the lattice expansion during small polaron formation occurs on the identical time scale as surface trapping and represents the probable driving force for sub-ps electron localization to the hematite surface.