Physicists have published images of complex molecules taken with X-ray lasers

In a technique known as Coulomb explosion imaging, a high-intensity and ultra-short pulse

X-ray laser “knocks out” moleculesmany electrons. Due to the strong electrostatic repulsion between the remaining positively charged atoms, the molecule explodes within a few femtoseconds—millionths of a billionth of a second—and the individual atoms fly apart and are detected by the detector.

Our group and many other researchersFor some time, similar experiments have been carried out to visualize the Coulomb explosion, but we have never been able to get such clear images of such a relatively large molecule before, ”said Rolles.

“One of the key points of the experiment wasthat we were able to see all the hydrogen atoms, which are difficult to track with more traditional methods such as X-rays or electron diffraction,” added Rudenko.

The resulting images are an important step inway to record molecular "movies" that the researchers hope will be used to observe the details of biochemical, chemical and physical reactions at high resolution.

SLAC National Laboratory at Stanfordis going to launch its upgraded high-frequency X-ray laser LCLS-2 in the fall of 2022 - it will produce 1000 times more pulses per second than the current laser model. The combination of incredibly high repetition rates with the demonstrated Coulomb explosion imaging technique promises to revolutionize the field of molecular "filmmaking", benefiting important technological fields such as solar energy conversion, photocatalysis and artificial photosynthesis.

“We recently received over $1.1 million fromNational Science Foundation to purchase a femtosecond laser with a high repetition rate of 100 kHz for our laboratory. With the new laser and what we have learned about the visualization of the Coulomb explosion, we hope that we will be able to shoot similar “movies” here too,” Rudenko said.

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