Observation of Rabi dynamics with a short-wavelength free-electron laser.

Rabi oscillations are periodic modulations of populations in two-level systems interacting with a time-varying field1. They are ubiquitous in physics with applications in different areas such as photonics2, nano-electronics3, electron microscopy4 and quantum information5. While the theory developed by Rabi was intended for fermions in gyrating magnetic fields, Autler and Townes realized that it could also be used to describe coherent light-matter interactions within the rotating-wave approximation6. Although intense nanometre-wavelength light sources have been available for more than a decade7-9, Rabi dynamics at such short wavelengths has not been directly observed. Here we show that femtosecond extreme-ultraviolet pulses from a seeded free-electron laser10 can drive Rabi dynamics between the ground state and an excited state in helium atoms. The measured photoelectron signal reveals an Autler-Townes doublet and an avoided crossing, phenomena that are both fundamental to coherent atom-field interactions11. Using an analytical model derived from perturbation theory on top of the Rabi model, we find that the ultrafast build-up of the doublet structure carries the signature of a quantum interference effect between resonant and non-resonant photoionization pathways. Given the recent availability of intense attosecond12 and few-femtosecond13 extreme-ultraviolet pulses, our results unfold opportunities to carry out ultrafast manipulation of coherent processes at short wavelengths using free-electron lasers.

Crystallization kinetics of atomic crystals revealed by a single-shot and single-particle X-ray diffraction experiment.

Crystallization is a fundamental natural phenomenon and the ubiquitous physical process in materials science for the design of new materials. So far, experimental observations of the structural dynamics in crystallization have been mostly restricted to slow dynamics. We present here an exclusive way to explore the dynamics of crystallization in highly controlled conditions (i.e., in the absence of impurities acting as seeds of the crystallites) as it occurs in vacuum. We have measured the early formation stage of solid Xe nanoparticles nucleated in an expanding supercooled Xe jet by means of an X-ray diffraction experiment with 10-fs X-ray free-electron laser (XFEL) pulses. We found that the structure of Xe nanoparticles is not pure face-centered cubic (fcc), the expected stable phase, but a mixture of fcc and randomly stacked hexagonal close-packed (rhcp) structures. Furthermore, we identified the instantaneous coexistence of the comparably sized fcc and rhcp domains in single Xe nanoparticles. The observations are explained by the scenario of structural aging, in which the nanoparticles initially crystallize in the highly stacking-disordered rhcp phase and the structure later forms the stable fcc phase. The results are reminiscent of analogous observations in hard-sphere systems, indicating the universal role of the stacking-disordered phase in nucleation.

Ultrafast Structural Dynamics of Nanoparticles in Intense Laser Fields.

Femtosecond laser pulses have opened new frontiers for the study of ultrafast phase transitions and nonequilibrium states of matter. In this Letter, we report on structural dynamics in atomic clusters pumped with intense near-infrared (NIR) pulses into a nanoplasma state. Employing wide-angle scattering with intense femtosecond x-ray pulses from a free-electron laser source, we find that highly excited xenon nanoparticles retain their crystalline bulk structure and density in the inner core long after the driving NIR pulse. The observed emergence of structural disorder in the nanoplasma is consistent with a propagation from the surface to the inner core of the clusters.

Radiation-Induced Chemical Dynamics in Ar Clusters Exposed to Strong X-Ray Pulses.

We show that electron and ion spectroscopy reveals the details of the oligomer formation in Ar clusters exposed to an x-ray free electron laser (XFEL) pulse, i.e., chemical dynamics triggered by x rays. With guidance from a dedicated molecular dynamics simulation tool, we find that van der Waals bonding, the oligomer formation mechanism, and charge transfer among the cluster constituents significantly affect ionization dynamics induced by an XFEL pulse of moderate fluence. Our results clearly demonstrate that XFEL pulses can be used not only to "damage and destroy" molecular assemblies but also to modify and transform their molecular structure. The accuracy of the predictions obtained makes it possible to apply the cluster spectroscopy, in connection with the respective simulations, for estimation of the XFEL pulse fluence in the fluence regime below single-atom multiple-photon absorption, which is hardly accessible with other diagnostic tools.

Ultrafast Coulomb explosion of a diiodomethane molecule induced by an X-ray free-electron laser pulse.

Coulomb explosion of diiodomethane CH2I2 molecules irradiated by ultrashort and intense X-ray pulses from SACLA, the Japanese X-ray free electron laser facility, was investigated by multi-ion coincidence measurements and self-consistent charge density-functional-based tight-binding (SCC-DFTB) simulations. The diiodomethane molecule, containing two heavy-atom X-ray absorbing sites, exhibits a rather different charge generation and nuclear motion dynamics compared to iodomethane CH3I with only a single heavy atom, as studied earlier. We focus on charge creation and distribution in CH2I2 in comparison to CH3I. The release of kinetic energy into atomic ion fragments is also studied by comparing SCC-DFTB simulations with the experiment. Compared to earlier simulations, several key enhancements are made, such as the introduction of a bond axis recoil model, where vibrational energy generated during charge creation processes induces only bond stretching or shrinking. We also propose an analytical Coulomb energy partition model to extract the essential mechanism of Coulomb explosion of molecules from the computed and the experimentally measured kinetic energies of fragment atomic ions by partitioning each pair Coulomb interaction energy into two ions of the pair under the constraint of momentum conservation. Effective internuclear distances assigned to individual fragment ions at the critical moment of the Coulomb explosion are then estimated from the average kinetic energies of the ions. We demonstrate, with good agreement between the experiment and the SCC-DFTB simulation, how the more heavily charged iodine fragments and their interplay define the characteristic features of the Coulomb explosion of CH2I2. The present study also confirms earlier findings concerning the magnitude of bond elongation in the ultrashort X-ray pulse duration, showing that structural damage to all but C-H bonds does not develop to a noticeable degree in the pulse length of ∼10 fs.

Photoelectron diffraction in methane probed via vibrationally resolved inner-valence photoionization cross-section ratios.

Vibrationally resolved photoionization of the 2a1 orbital in methane has been studied both experimentally and theoretically, over a wide range of photon energies (40-475 eV). A vibrational progression associated with the symmetric stretch mode of the 2a1(-1) single-hole state was observed in the experimental photoelectron spectra. Individual vibrational sub-states of the spectra were found to be best modeled by asymmetric line-shapes with linewidths gradually increasing with the vibrational quantum number. This indicates the occurrence of a pre-dissociation process for the involved ionic state, discussed here in detail. Finally, diffraction patterns were observed in the vibrational branching ratios for the first three vibrational sub-states ("v-ratios") of the experimental photoelectron spectra. They are found to be in excellent qualitative agreement with those obtained from ab initio models. Compared with previous studies of the 1a1(-1) core-shell photoionization of methane, the period of oscillation of the v-ratios is found to be very different and the phases are of opposite signs. This suggests a strong interplay between the electron diffraction and interference effects inside the molecular potential.

From double-slit interference to structural information in simple hydrocarbons.

Interferences in coherent emission of photoelectrons from two equivalent atomic centers in a molecule are the microscopic analogies of the celebrated Young's double-slit experiment. By considering inner-valence shell ionization in the series of simple hydrocarbons C2H2, C2H4, and C2H6, we show that double-slit interference is widespread and has built-in quantitative information on geometry, orbital composition, and many-body effects. A theoretical and experimental study is presented over the photon energy range of 70-700 eV. A strong dependence of the oscillation period on the C-C distance is observed, which can be used to determine bond lengths between selected pairs of equivalent atoms with an accuracy of at least 0.01 Å. Furthermore, we show that the observed oscillations are directly informative of the nature and atomic composition of the inner-valence molecular orbitals and that observed ratios are quantitative measures of elusive many-body effects. The technique and analysis can be immediately extended to a large class of compounds.

Generation of entanglement using a short-wavelength seeded free-electron laser.

Quantum entanglement between the degrees of freedom encountered in the classical world is challenging to observe due to the surrounding environment. To elucidate this issue, we investigate the entanglement generated over ultrafast timescales in a bipartite quantum system comprising two massive particles: a free-moving photoelectron, which expands to a mesoscopic length scale, and a light-dressed atomic ion, which represents a hybrid state of light and matter. Although the photoelectron spectra are measured classically, the entanglement allows us to reveal information about the dressed-state dynamics of the ion and the femtosecond extreme ultraviolet pulses delivered by a seeded free-electron laser. The observed generation of entanglement is interpreted using the time-dependent von Neumann entropy. Our results unveil the potential for using short-wavelength coherent light pulses from free-electron lasers to generate entangled photoelectron and ion systems for studying spooky action at a distance.

Structural characterization of small Xe clusters using their 5s correlation satellite electron spectrum.

The Xe 5s photoelectron spectrum and 5p(4)nl correlation satellites have been studied in small Xe clusters of an average size of about 15 atoms. The satellite structures are interpreted with the help of the atomic Xe lines. Transition energy shifts between the atomic and the corner/edge/face/bulk components in clusters are divided into polarization screening and exchange interaction energy. Interestingly enough, the ratios between corner/edge/face/bulk polarization screening and exchange interaction energies are found to reflect the ratios of the coordination numbers of corner/edge/face/bulk atoms in these small icosahedral cluster structures.

Circularly polarized x rays: another probe of ultrafast molecular decay dynamics.

Dissociative nuclear motion in core-excited molecular states leads to a splitting of the fragment Auger lines: the Auger-Doppler effect. We present here for the first time experimental evidence for an Auger-Doppler effect following F1s → a(1g)* inner-shell excitation by circularly polarized x rays in SF(6). In spite of a uniform distribution of the dissociating S-F bonds near the polarization plane of the light, the intersection between the subpopulation of molecules selected by the core excitation with the cone of dissociation induces a strong anisotropy in the distribution of the S-F bonds that contributes to the scattering profile measured in the polarization plane.

Vibrational scattering anisotropy generated by multichannel quantum interference.

Based on angularly and vibrationally resolved electron spectroscopy measurements in acetylene, we report the first observation of anomalously strong vibrational anisotropy of resonant Auger scattering through the C 1s→π* excited state. We provide a theoretical model explaining the new phenomenon by three coexisting interference effects: (i) interference between resonant and direct photoionization channels, (ii) interference of the scattering channels through the core-excited bending states with orthogonal orientation of the molecular orbitals, (iii) scattering through two wells of the double-well bending mode potential. The interplay of nuclear and electronic motions offers in this case a new type of nuclear wave packet interferometry sensitive to the anisotropy of nuclear dynamics: whether which-path information is available or not depends on the final vibrational state serving for path selection.

Refinement for single-nanoparticle structure determination from low-quality single-shot coherent diffraction data.

With the emergence of X-ray free-electron lasers, it is possible to investigate the structure of nanoscale samples by employing coherent diffractive imaging in the X-ray spectral regime. In this work, we developed a refinement method for structure reconstruction applicable to low-quality coherent diffraction data. The method is based on the gradient search method and considers the missing region of a diffraction pattern and the small number of detected photons. We introduced an initial estimate of the structure in the method to improve the convergence. The present method is applied to an experimental diffraction pattern of an Xe cluster obtained in an X-ray scattering experiment at the SPring-8 Angstrom Compact free-electron LAser (SACLA) facility. It is found that the electron density is successfully reconstructed from the diffraction pattern with a large missing region, with a good initial estimate of the structure. The diffraction pattern calculated from the reconstructed electron density reproduced the observed diffraction pattern well, including the characteristic intensity modulation in each ring. Our refinement method enables structure reconstruction from diffraction patterns under difficulties such as missing areas and low diffraction intensity, and it is potentially applicable to the structure determination of samples that have low scattering power.

Characterizing crystalline defects in single nanoparticles from angular correlations of single-shot diffracted X-rays.

Characterizing and controlling the uniformity of nanoparticles is crucial for their application in science and technology because crystalline defects in the nanoparticles strongly affect their unique properties. Recently, ultra-short and ultra-bright X-ray pulses provided by X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) opened up the possibility of structure determination of nanometre-scale matter with Å spatial resolution. However, it is often difficult to reconstruct the 3D structural information from single-shot X-ray diffraction patterns owing to the random orientation of the particles. This report proposes an analysis approach for characterizing defects in nanoparticles using wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) data from free-flying single nanoparticles. The analysis method is based on the concept of correlated X-ray scattering, in which correlations of scattered X-ray are used to recover detailed structural information. WAXS experiments of xenon nanoparticles, or clusters, were conducted at an XFEL facility in Japan by using the SPring-8 Ångstrom compact free-electron laser (SACLA). Bragg spots in the recorded single-shot X-ray diffraction patterns showed clear angular correlations, which offered significant structural information on the nanoparticles. The experimental angular correlations were reproduced by numerical simulation in which kinematical theory of diffraction was combined with geometric calculations. We also explain the diffuse scattering intensity as being due to the stacking faults in the xenon clusters.

Real-time observation of X-ray-induced intramolecular and interatomic electronic decay in CH2I2.

The increasing availability of X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) has catalyzed the development of single-object structural determination and of structural dynamics tracking in real-time. Disentangling the molecular-level reactions triggered by the interaction with an XFEL pulse is a fundamental step towards developing such applications. Here we report real-time observations of XFEL-induced electronic decay via short-lived transient electronic states in the diiodomethane molecule, using a femtosecond near-infrared probe laser. We determine the lifetimes of the transient states populated during the XFEL-induced Auger cascades and find that multiply charged iodine ions are issued from short-lived (∼20 fs) transient states, whereas the singly charged ones originate from significantly longer-lived states (∼100 fs). We identify the mechanisms behind these different time scales: contrary to the short-lived transient states which relax by molecular Auger decay, the long-lived ones decay by an interatomic Coulombic decay between two iodine atoms, during the molecular fragmentation.

In situ correction of the spherical aberration in a double-toroidal electron analyzer.

In an energy-dispersive electron spectrometer, the electrons with the same kinetic energy but different polar angles fly along different paths and impinge upon the detector at different locations. This behavior materializes the spherical aberration of the electron optics, which deteriorates the focussing quality on the detector, and thus the energy resolution of the instrument. Here, we demonstrate that, in general, the electron time of flight changes monotonically as a function of the polar angle. Combining the impact position on the detector and the time of flight of electrons, the spherical aberration can be corrected and the energy resolution can be significantly improved, 1.5× in the case of our double toroidal analyser. This correction method has a general applicability and can be of interest to experimentalists willing to push further the performances of their electron spectrometers when the time of flight is available.

Disentangling Auger decays in O2 by photoelectron-ion coincidences.

In non-resonant Auger electron spectroscopies, multi core-ionized states lead to numerous energetically close-lying electronic transitions in Auger spectra, this hampering the assignment and interpretation of the experimental results. Here we reveal a new method to overcome this intrinsic limitation of non-resonant inner-shell spectroscopies. In a proof-of-principle experiment performed for the O2 molecule, most of the Auger final states are dissociative, and we measure in coincidence the kinetic energy of the photoelectron and the kinetic energy release of the (O+, O+) ion pairs produced after the Auger decay of the O 1s-1 core-ionized states. The Auger final states are assigned using energy conservation. We fully separate the contributions from the 4Σ- and 2Σ- intermediate ionic states and conclusively demonstrate that the Auger decay probability can dramatically depend on the different O2 1s -1 intermediate multiplet states. In addition, a metastable Auger final state also exists, with lifetime longer than 3.8 µs, and clear changes are observed in both branching ratio and spectral profile of the O 1s photoelectron spectrum when they are recorded in coincidence with either [Formula: see text] or with other ionic species. These changes are attributed to the population of the metastable [Formula: see text] Auger final state via different intermediate states.

Charge transfer in dissociating iodomethane and fluoromethane molecules ionized by intense femtosecond X-ray pulses.

Ultrafast electron transfer in dissociating iodomethane and fluoromethane molecules was studied at the Linac Coherent Light Source free-electron laser using an ultraviolet-pump, X-ray-probe scheme. The results for both molecules are discussed with respect to the nature of their UV excitation and different chemical properties. Signatures of long-distance intramolecular charge transfer are observed for both species, and a quantitative analysis of its distance dependence in iodomethane is carried out for charge states up to I(21+). The reconstructed critical distances for electron transfer are in good agreement with a classical over-the-barrier model and with an earlier experiment employing a near-infrared pump pulse.

Rotational Doppler Effect: A Probe for Molecular Orbitals Anisotropy.

The vibrationally resolved X-ray photoelectron spectra of X2Σg+(3σg−1) and B2Σu+(2σu−1) states of N2+ were recorded for different photon energies and orientations of the polarization vector. Clear dependencies of the spectral line widths on the X-ray polarization as well as on the symmetry of the final electronic states are observed. Contrary to the translational Doppler, the rotational Doppler broadening is sensitive to the photoelectron emission anisotropy. On the basis of theoretical modeling, we suggest that the different rotational Doppler broadenings observed for gerade and ungerade final states result from a Young's double-slit interference phenomenon.

Water adsorption on TiO2 surfaces probed by soft X-ray spectroscopies: bulk materials vs. isolated nanoparticles.

We describe an experimental method to probe the adsorption of water at the surface of isolated, substrate-free TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) based on soft X-ray spectroscopy in the gas phase using synchrotron radiation. To understand the interfacial properties between water and TiO2 surface, a water shell was adsorbed at the surface of TiO2 NPs. We used two different ways to control the hydration level of the NPs: in the first scheme, initially solvated NPs were dried and in the second one, dry NPs generated thanks to a commercial aerosol generator were exposed to water vapor. XPS was used to identify the signature of the water layer shell on the surface of the free TiO2 NPs and made it possible to follow the evolution of their hydration state. The results obtained allow the establishment of a qualitative determination of isolated NPs' surface states, as well as to unravel water adsorption mechanisms. This method appears to be a unique approach to investigate the interface between an isolated nano-object and a solvent over-layer, paving the way towards new investigation methods in heterogeneous catalysis on nanomaterials.

Charge and Nuclear Dynamics Induced by Deep Inner-Shell Multiphoton Ionization of CH3I Molecules by Intense X-ray Free-Electron Laser Pulses.

In recent years, free-electron lasers operating in the true X-ray regime have opened up access to the femtosecond-scale dynamics induced by deep inner-shell ionization. We have investigated charge creation and transfer dynamics in the context of molecular Coulomb explosion of a single molecule, exposed to sequential deep inner-shell ionization within an ultrashort (10 fs) X-ray pulse. The target molecule was CH3I, methane sensitized to X-rays by halogenization with a heavy element, iodine. Time-of-flight ion spectroscopy and coincident ion analysis was employed to investigate, via the properties of the atomic fragments, single-molecule charge states of up to +22. Experimental findings have been compared with a parametric model of simultaneous Coulomb explosion and charge transfer in the molecule. The study demonstrates that including realistic charge dynamics is imperative when molecular Coulomb explosion experiments using short-pulse facilities are performed.