Soft x-ray laser spectroscopy on trapped highly charged ions at FLASH

In a proof-of-principle experiment, we demonstrate high-resolution resonant laser excitation in the soft x-ray region at 48.6 eV of the 2 (2)S(1/2) to 2 (2)P(1/2) transition of Li-like Fe23+ ions trapped in an electron beam ion trap by using ultrabrilliant light from Free Electron Laser in Hamburg (FLASH). High precision spectroscopic studies of highly charged ions at this and upcoming x-ray lasers with an expected accuracy gain up to a factor of a thousand, become possible with our technique, thus potentially yielding fundamental insights, e.g., into basic aspects of QED.

Relativistic electron correlation, quantum electrodynamics, and the lifetime of the 1s(2)2s(2)2p2p0(3/2) level in boronlike argon

The lifetime of the Ar13+ 1s(2)2s(2)2p2p0(3/2) metastable level was determined at the Heidelberg Electron Beam Ion Trap to be 9.573(4)(5). The accuracy level of one per thousand makes this measurement sensitive to quantum electrodynamic effects like the electron anomalous magnetic moment (EAMM) and to relativistic electron-electron correlation effects like the frequency-dependent Breit interaction. Theoretical predictions, adjusted for the EAMM, cluster about a lifetime that is approximately shorter than our experimental result.

Evidence for rescattering in intense, femtosecond laser interactions with a negative ion

It is now well established that energetic electron emission, nonsequential ionization, and high harmonic generation, produced during the interaction of intense, femtosecond laser pulses with atoms (and atomic positive ions), can be explained by invoking rescattering of the active electron in the laser field, the so-called rescattering mechanism. In contrast for negative ions, the role of rescattering has not been established experimentally. By irradiating F- ions with ultrashort laser pulses, F+ ion yields as a function of intensity for both linearly and circularly polarized light have been measured. We find that, at intensities well below saturation for F+ production by sequential ionization, there is a small but significant enhancement in the yield for the case of linearly polarized light, providing the first clear experimental evidence for the existence of the rescattering mechanism in negative ions.

Second-order autocorrelation of XUV FEL pulses via time resolved two-photon single ionization of He

Second-order autocorrelation spectra of XUV free-electron laser pulses from the Spring-8 Compact SASE Source (SCSS) have been recorded by time and momentum resolved detection of two-photon single ionization of He at 20.45 eV using a split-mirror delay-stage in combination with high-resolution recoil-ion momentum spectroscopy (COLTRIMS). From the autocorrelation trace we extract a coherence time of 8 ± 2 fs and a mean pulse duration of 28 ± 5 fs, much shorter than estimations based on electron bunch-length measurements. Simulations within the partial coherence model [Opt. Lett. 35, 3441 (2010)] are in agreement with experiment if a pulse-front tilt across the FEL beam diameter is taken into account that leads to a temporal shift of about 6 fs between both pulse replicas.

Delta-electron emission in fast heavy ion atom collisions

Biological damages such as mutations, chromosomal aberrations etc. are a consequence of biochemical changes mostly in the DNA. With ionizing radiation, these chemical changes are due to primary ionization events and secondary ionization effects caused by the primarily produced electrons. Differences in the biological response of densely ionizing radiation, like heavy charged particles, in comparison to sparsely ionizing radiation, such as X- or gamma-rays, are mainly due to the differences in the production of the so called delta-electrons. Therefore, the emission process of electrons i.e. the cross section for the primary ionization event as well as the energy and angular distribution of the emitted electrons should be understood in detail. The delta-electron emission processes occuring in fast heavy ion atom collisions are explained qualitatively. The different spectral structures of electron emission arising from either the target or the projectile are explained in terms of simple models of the kinetics of momentum transfer induced by the COULOMB forces. In collisions of very heavy ions with matter, high nuclear COULOMB forces are created. These forces lead to a strong polarization of the electronic states of the participated electrons. The effects of this polarization are discussed.

Multiple ionization and fragmentation dynamics of molecular iodine studied in IR-XUV pump-probe experiments

The ionization and fragmentation dynamics of iodine molecules (I(2)) are traced using very intense (∼10(14) W cm(-2)) ultra-short (∼60 fs) light pulses with 87 eV photons of the Free-electron LASer at Hamburg (FLASH) in combination with a synchronized femtosecond optical laser. Within a pump-probe scheme the IR pulse initiates a molecular fragmentation and then, after an adjustable time delay, the system is exposed to an intense FEL pulse. This way we follow the creation of highly-charged molecular fragments as a function of time, and probe the dynamics of multi-photon absorption during the transition from a molecule to individual atoms.

Testing QED screening and two-loop contributions with He-Like ions

We report wavelength measurements of H-like and He-like ions obtained with a novel x-ray spectrometer at the Heidelberg Electron Beam Ion Trap. The experimental uncertainty for the Lyman-alpha1 wavelength in Cl16+ is reduced by a factor of 3 and, as expected, excellent agreement with theory is maintained. For the resonance line in He-like Ar16+, an uncertainty of only deltalambda/lambda=2x10(-6) was achieved. This is the most precise x-ray wavelength reported for highly charged ions to date, and allows to test recent predictions on QED two-electron and two-photon radiative corrections for He-like ions. The results also point to the advantages of establishing absolute x-ray wavelength standards using Lyman-alpha transitions (in the present case Ar17+ Lyman-alpha1) to supersede the current ones.

Recoil-ion momentum distributions for two-photon double ionization of He and Ne by 44 eV free-electron laser radiation

Recoil-ion momentum distributions for two-photon double ionization of He and Ne (variant Planck's over omega=44 eV) have been recorded with a reaction microscope at FLASH (the free-electron laser at Hamburg) at an intensity of approximately 1 x 10(14) W/cm2 exploring the dynamics of the two fundamental two-photon-two-electron reaction pathways, namely, sequential and direct (or nonsequential) absorption of the photons. We find strong differences in the recoil-ion momentum patterns for the two mechanisms pointing to the significantly different two-electron emission dynamics and thus provide serious constraints for theoretical models.

Decay rate measurement of the first vibrationally excited state of MgH+ in a cryogenic Paul trap

We present a method to measure the decay rate of the first excited vibrational state of polar molecular ions that are part of a Coulomb crystal in a cryogenic linear Paul trap. Specifically, we have monitored the decay of the |ν = 1, J = 1)(X) towards the |ν = 0, J = 0)(X) level in MgH+ by saturated laser excitation of the |ν = 0, J = 2)(X)-|ν = 1, J = 1)(X) transition followed by state selective resonance enhanced two-photon dissociation out of the |ν = 0, J=2)(X) level. The experimentally observed rate of 6.32(0.69) s(-1) is in excellent agreement with the theory value of 6.13(0.03) s(-1) (this Letter). The technique enables the determination of decay rates, and thus absorption strengths, with an accuracy at the few percent level.

Efficacy of Retreatment After Failed Direct-acting Antiviral Therapy in Patients With HCV Genotype 1-3 Infections

Hepatitis C virus infection is causing chronic liver disease, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. By combining direct-acting antivirals (DAAs), high sustained virologic response rates (SVRs) can be achieved. Resistance-associated substitutions (RASs) are commonly observed after DAA failure, and especially nonstructural protein 5A (NS5A) RASs may impact retreatment options.^1-3 Data on retreatment of DAA failure patients using first-generation DAAs are limited.^4-7 Recently, a second-generation protease- and NS5A-inhibitor plus sofosbuvir (voxilaprevir/velpatasvir/sofosbuvir [VOX/VEL/SOF]) was approved for retreatment after DAA failure.⁸ However, this and other second-generation regimens are not available in many resource-limited countries or are not reimbursed by regular insurance, and recommendations regarding the selection of retreatment regimens using first-generation DAAs are very important. This study aimed to analyze patients who were re-treated with first-generation DAAs after failure of a DAA combination therapy.

A cryogenic electrostatic trap for long-time storage of keV ion beams

We report on the realization and operation of a fast ion beam trap of the linear electrostatic type employing liquid helium cooling to reach extremely low blackbody radiation temperature and residual gas density and, hence, long storage times of more than 5 min which are unprecedented for keV ion beams. Inside a beam pipe that can be cooled to temperatures <15 K, with 1.8 K reached in some locations, an ion beam pulse can be stored at kinetic energies of 2-20 keV between two electrostatic mirrors. Along with an overview of the cryogenic trap design, we present a measurement of the residual gas density inside the trap resulting in only 2 x 10(3) cm(-3), which for a room temperature environment corresponds to a pressure in the 10(-14) mbar range. The device, called the cryogenic trap for fast ion beams, is now being used to investigate molecules and clusters at low temperatures, but has also served as a design prototype for the cryogenic heavy-ion storage ring currently under construction at the Max-Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics.

Three-body Coulomb problem probed by mapping the Bethe surface in ionizing ion-atom collisions

The three-body Coulomb problem has been explored in kinematically complete experiments on single ionization of helium by 100 MeV/u C(6+) and 3.6 MeV/u Au(53+) impact. Low-energy electron emission ( E(e)<150 eV) as a function of the projectile deflection theta(p) (momentum transfer), i.e., the Bethe surface [15], has been mapped with Delta theta(p)+/-25 nanoradian resolution at extremely large perturbations ( 3.6 MeV/u Au(53+)) where single ionization occurs at impact parameters of typically 10 times the He K-shell radius. The experimental data are not in agreement with state-of-the-art continuum distorted wave-eikonal initial state theory.

High-precision laser-assisted absolute determination of x-ray diffraction angles

A novel technique for absolute wavelength determination in high-precision crystal x-ray spectroscopy recently introduced has been upgraded reaching unprecedented accuracies. The method combines visible laser beams with the Bond method, where Bragg angles (θ and -θ) are determined without any x-ray reference lines. Using flat crystals this technique makes absolute x-ray wavelength measurements feasible even at low x-ray fluxes. The upgraded spectrometer has been used in combination with first experiments on the 1s2p(1)P(1) → 1s(2)(1)S(0) w-line in He-like argon. By resolving a minute curvature of the x-ray lines the accuracy reaches there the best ever reported value of 1.5 ppm. The result is sensitive to predicted second-order QED contributions at the level of two-electron screening and two-photon radiative diagrams and will allow for the first time to benchmark predicted binding energies for He-like ions at this level of precision.