• Media type: E-Article
  • Title: Free-Electron Lasers: New Avenues in Molecular Physics and Photochemistry
  • Contributor: Ullrich, Joachim; Rudenko, Artem; Moshammer, Robert
  • Published: Annual Reviews, 2012
  • Published in: Annual Review of Physical Chemistry, 63 (2012) 1, Seite 635-660
  • Language: English
  • DOI: 10.1146/annurev-physchem-032511-143720
  • ISSN: 0066-426X; 1545-1593
  • Origination:
  • Footnote:
  • Description: Free-electron lasers are fourth-generation light sources that deliver extremely intense (>1012 photons per pulse), ultrashort (∼10−14 s = 10 fs) light pulses at up to kilohertz repetition rates with unprecedented coherence properties and span a broad wavelength regime from soft (∼10 eV) to hard X-ray energies (∼15 keV). They thus enable a whole suite of novel experiments in molecular physics and chemistry: Inspecting radiation-induced reactions in cold molecular ions provides unprecedented insight into the photochemistry of interstellar clouds and upper planetary atmospheres; double core-hole photoelectron spectroscopy offers enhanced sensitivity for chemical analysis; the dynamics of highly excited molecular states, pumped by vacuum ultraviolet pulses, can be inspected; and vacuum ultraviolet or X-ray probe pulses generally hold the promise to trace chemical reactions along an entire reaction coordinate with atomic spatial and temporal resolution. This review intends to provide a first overview on upcoming possibilities, emerging technologies, pioneering results, and future perspectives in this exciting field.