Conical intersection and coherent vibrational dynamics in alkyl iodides captured by attosecond transient absorption spectroscopy.

The photodissociation dynamics of alkyl iodides along the C-I bond are captured by attosecond extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) transient absorption spectroscopy employing resonant ∼20 fs UV pump pulses. The methodology of previous experiments on CH3I [Chang et al., J. Chem. Phys. 154, 234301 (2021)] is extended to the investigation of a C-I bond-breaking reaction in the dissociative A-band of C2H5I, i-C3H7I, and t-C4H9I. Probing iodine 4d core-to-valence transitions in the XUV enables one to map wave packet bifurcation at a conical intersection in the A-band as well as coherent vibrations in the ground state of the parent molecules. Analysis of spectroscopic bifurcation signatures yields conical intersection crossing times of 15 ± 4 fs for CH3I, 14 ± 5 fs for C2H5I, and 24 ± 4 fs for i-C3H7I and t-C4H9I, respectively. Observations of coherent vibrations, resulting from a projection of A-band structural dynamics onto the ground state by resonant impulsive stimulated Raman scattering, indirectly reveal multimode C-I stretch and CCI bend vibrations in the A-bands of C2H5I, i-C3H7I, and t-C4H9I.

Mapping wave packet bifurcation at a conical intersection in CH3I by attosecond XUV transient absorption spectroscopy.

Extreme ultraviolet (XUV) transient absorption spectroscopy has emerged as a sensitive tool for mapping the real-time structural and electronic evolution of molecules. Here, attosecond XUV transient absorption is used to track dynamics in the A-band of methyl iodide (CH3I). Gaseous CH3I molecules are excited to the A-band by a UV pump (277 nm, ∼20 fs) and probed by attosecond XUV pulses targeting iodine I(4d) core-to-valence transitions. Owing to the excellent temporal resolution of the technique, passage through a conical intersection is mapped through spectral signatures of nonadiabatic wave packet bifurcation observed to occur at 15 ± 4 fs following UV photoexcitation. The observed XUV signatures and time dynamics are in agreement with previous simulations [H. Wang, M. Odelius, and D. Prendergast, J. Chem. Phys. 151, 124106 (2019)]. Due to the short duration of the UV pump pulse, coherent vibrational motion in the CH3I ground state along the C-I stretch mode (538 ± 7 cm-1) launched by resonant impulsive stimulated Raman scattering and dynamics in multiphoton excited states of CH3I are also detected.

Revealing electronic state-switching at conical intersections in alkyl iodides by ultrafast XUV transient absorption spectroscopy.

Conical intersections between electronic states often dictate the chemistry of photoexcited molecules. Recently developed sources of ultrashort extreme ultraviolet (XUV) pulses tuned to element-specific transitions in molecules allow for the unambiguous detection of electronic state-switching at a conical intersection. Here, the fragmentation of photoexcited iso-propyl iodide and tert-butyl iodide molecules (i-C3H7I and t-C4H9I) through a conical intersection between 3Q0/1Q1 spin-orbit states is revealed by ultrafast XUV transient absorption measuring iodine 4d core-to-valence transitions. The electronic state-sensitivity of the technique allows for a complete mapping of molecular dissociation from photoexcitation to photoproducts. In both molecules, the sub-100 fs transfer of a photoexcited wave packet from the 3Q0 state into the 1Q1 state at the conical intersection is captured. The results show how differences in the electronic state-switching of the wave packet in i-C3H7I and t-C4H9I directly lead to differences in the photoproduct branching ratio of the two systems.