Abstract
Electron diffraction is a valuable tool to capture structural information from molecules in the gas phase. However, the information contained in the diffraction patterns is limited due to the random orientation of the molecules. Additional structural information can be retrieved if the molecules are aligned. Molecules can be impulsively aligned with femtosecond laser pulses, producing a transient alignment. The alignment persists only for a time on the order of a picosecond, so a pulsed electron gun is needed to record the diffraction patterns. In this manuscript, we describe the alignment process and show the changes in the diffraction pattern as a result of alignment. Carbon disulfide, a linear molecule, was chosen as a model molecule for these experiments. We have also experimentally investigated the temporal evolution of the alignment and the dependence on the laser pulse intensity.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Hargittai I, Hargittai M (1988) Stereochemical applications of gas-phase electron diffraction. VCH Publishers, New York
Varga Z, Vest B, Schwerdtfeger P, Hargittai M (2010) Inorg Chem 49:2816–2821
Hnyk D, Wann DA, Holub J, Samdal S, Rankin DWH (2011) Dalton Trans 40:5734–5737
Schwabedissen J, Lane PD, Masters SL, Hassler K, Wann DA (2014) Dalton Trans 43:10175–10182
Kolesnikova IN, Dorofeeva OV, Karasev NM, Oberhammer H, Shishkov IF (2014) J Mol Struct 1074:196–200
Wu Z, Li H, Zhu B, Zeng X, Hayes SA, Mitzel NW, Beckers H, Berger RJF (2015) Phys Chem Chem Phys 17:8784–8791
Zhabanov YA, Zakharov AV, Giricheva NI, Shlykov SA, Koifman OI, Girichev GV (2015) J Mol Struct 1092:104–112
Romenesko DJ, Wong TC, Bartell L (1975) In: Sim GA, Sutton LE (eds) Molecular structure by diffraction methods. The Chemical Society, London
Blom R, Cradock S, Davidson SL, Rankin DWH (1991) J Mol Struct 245:369–377
Davis MJ, Rankin DWH, Cradock S (1990) J Mol Struct 238:273–287
Klimkowski V, Ewbank JD, Van Alsenoy C, Scarsdale JN, Schäfer L (1982) J Am Chem Soc 104:1476–1480
Mitzel NW, Rankin DWH (2003) Dalton Trans 19:3650–3662
Spence JCH, Doak RB (2004) Phys Rev Lett 92:198102
Pabst S, Ho PJ, Santra R (2010) Phys Rev A 81:043425
Hensley CJ, Yang J, Centurion M (2012) Phys Rev Lett 109:133202
Yang J, Makhija V, Kumarappan V, Centurion M (2014) Struct Dyn 1:044101
Stapelfeldt H, Seideman T (2003) Rev Mod Phys 75:543–557
Hoshina K, Yamanouchi K, Takashi T, Ose Y, Todokoro H (2003) J Chem Phys 118:6211–6221
Reckenthaeler PR, Centurion M, Fuss W, Krausz F, Fill EE (2009) Phys Rev Lett 102:213001
Centurion M, Reckenthaeler P, Krausz F, Fill E (2010) J Mol Struct 978:141–146
Küpper J, Stern S, Holmegaard L et al (2014) Phys Rev Lett 112:083002
Seideman T (2001) J Chem Phys 115:5965–5973
Seideman T, Hamilton E (2005) Adv At Mol Opt Phys 52:289–329
Prince E (2004) International tables for crystallography mathematical, physical and chemical tables. Kluwer, Dordrecht
Pullman D, Friedrich B, Herschbach D (1990) J Chem Phys 93:3224–3236
Williamson JC, Zewail AH (1993) Chem Phys Lett 209:10–16
Yang Y, Beck J, Uiterwaal CJ, Centurion M (2015) http://arxiv.org/abs/1410.6429. Accessed 7 July 2015
Oudheusden T, Pasmans PLEM, van der Geer SB, de Loos MJ, van der Wiel MJ, Luiten OJ (2010) Phys Rev Lett 105:264801
Weathersby SP, Brown G, Centurion M et al (2015) Rev Sci Instrum 86:073702
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by the US Department of Energy Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences under Award Number DE-SC0003931.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Dedicated to Professor Magdolna Hargittai on the occasion of her 70th birthday.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Yang, J., Centurion, M. Gas-phase electron diffraction from laser-aligned molecules. Struct Chem 26, 1513–1520 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11224-015-0650-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11224-015-0650-4