1
|
Bergmeister S, Ganner L, Locher J, Zappa F, Scheier P, Gruber E. Spectroscopy of helium-tagged molecular ions-Development of a novel experimental setup. THE REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 2023; 94:055105. [PMID: 37191466 DOI: 10.1063/5.0144239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/28/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
In this contribution, we present an efficient and alternative method to the commonly used RF-multipole trap technique to produce He-tagged molecular ions at cryogenic temperatures, which are perfectly suitable for messenger spectroscopy. The seeding of dopant ions in multiply charged helium nanodroplets, in combination with a gentle extraction of the latter from the helium matrix, enables the efficient production of He-tagged ion species. With a quadrupole mass filter, a specific ion of interest is selected, merged with a laser beam, and the photoproducts are measured in a time-of-flight mass-spectrometer. The detection of the photofragment signal from a basically zero background is much more sensitive than the depletion of the same amount of signal from precursor ions, delivering high quality spectra at reduced data acquisition times. Proof-of-principle measurements of bare and He-tagged Ar-cluster ions, as well as of He-tagged C60 ions, are presented.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Bergmeister
- Institute for Ion Physics and Applied Physics, University of Innsbruck, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Lisa Ganner
- Institute for Ion Physics and Applied Physics, University of Innsbruck, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Johannes Locher
- Institute for Ion Physics and Applied Physics, University of Innsbruck, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Fabio Zappa
- Institute for Ion Physics and Applied Physics, University of Innsbruck, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Paul Scheier
- Institute for Ion Physics and Applied Physics, University of Innsbruck, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Elisabeth Gruber
- Institute for Ion Physics and Applied Physics, University of Innsbruck, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Albertini S, Gruber E, Zappa F, Krasnokutski S, Laimer F, Scheier P. Chemistry and physics of dopants embedded in helium droplets. MASS SPECTROMETRY REVIEWS 2022; 41:529-567. [PMID: 33993543 DOI: 10.1002/mas.21699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2021] [Revised: 04/20/2021] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Helium droplets represent a cold inert matrix, free of walls with outstanding properties to grow complexes and clusters at conditions that are perfect to simulate cold and dense regions of the interstellar medium. At sub-Kelvin temperatures, barrierless reactions triggered by radicals or ions have been observed and studied by optical spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. The present review summarizes developments of experimental techniques and methods and recent results they enabled.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Simon Albertini
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Elisabeth Gruber
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Fabio Zappa
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Serge Krasnokutski
- Laboratory Astrophysics Group of the MPI for Astronomy, University of Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Felix Laimer
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Paul Scheier
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Zhang J, Kong W. Electron diffraction as a structure tool for charged and neutral nanoclusters formed in superfluid helium droplets. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2022; 24:6349-6362. [PMID: 35257134 PMCID: PMC10508180 DOI: 10.1039/d2cp00048b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
This perspective presents the current status and future directions in using electron diffraction to determine the structures of clusters formed in superfluid helium droplets. The details of the experimental setup and data treatment procedures are explained, and several examples are illustrated. The ease of forming atomic and molecular clusters has been recognized since the invention of superfluid helium droplet beams. To resolve atomic structures from clusters formed in droplets, substantial efforts have been devoted to minimizing the contribution of helium to diffraction signals. With active background subtraction, we have obtained structures from clusters containing a few to more than 10 monomers, with and without heavy atoms to assist with the diffraction intensity, for both neutral and ionic species. From fittings of the diffraction profiles using model structures, we have observed that some small clusters adopt the structures of the corresponding solid sample, even for dimers such as iodine and pyrene, while others require trimers or tetramers to reach the structural motif of bulk solids, and smaller clusters such as CS2 dimers adopt gas phase structures. Cationic clusters of argon clusters contain an Ar3+ core, while pyrene dimers demonstrate a change in the intermolecular distance, from 3.5 Å for neutral dimers to 3.0 Å for cations. Future improvements in reducing the background of helium, and in expanding the information content of electron diffraction such as detection of charge distributions, are also discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jie Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA.
| | - Wei Kong
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Zhang J, Trejo M, Bradford SD, Lei L, Kong W. Electron Diffraction of Ionic Argon Nanoclusters Embedded in Superfluid Helium Droplets. J Phys Chem Lett 2021; 12:9644-9650. [PMID: 34586826 PMCID: PMC8550877 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.1c02712] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
We report electron diffraction of cationic argon nanoclusters embedded in superfluid helium droplets. Superfluid helium droplets are first doped with neutral argon atoms to form nanoclusters, and then the doped droplets are ionized by electrons. The much lower ionization energy of argon ensures that the positive charge resides on the Ar nanocluster. Using different stagnation temperatures and therefore droplets with different sizes, we have been able to preferentially form a small ionic cluster containing 2-4 Ar atoms and a larger cluster containing 7-11 atoms. The fitting results of the diffraction profiles agree with structures reported from theoretical calculations, containing a cationic trimer core with the remaining atoms largely neutral. This work testifies to the feasibility of performing electron diffraction from ionic species embedded in superfluid helium droplets, dispelling the concern over the particle density in the diffraction region. However, the large number of neutral helium atoms surrounding the cationic nanoclusters poses a challenge for the detection of the helium solvation layer, and the detection of which awaits further technological improvements.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Wei Kong
- Corresponding author, , 541-737-6714
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Laimer F, Zappa F, Scheier P. Size and Velocity Distribution of Negatively Charged Helium Nanodroplets. J Phys Chem A 2021; 125:7662-7669. [PMID: 34449223 PMCID: PMC9282675 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.1c05619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Precharged helium nanodroplets can be used in doping experiments with the advantage that they are amenable to size selection with electrostatic fields, therefore adding a useful tuning parameter for dopant growth. For all these applications, the knowledge of the size distribution of charged droplets is an essential parameter, which we have so far assumed would be equivalent to that of their neutral precursors. Here, this assumption is experimentally investigated for negatively charged clusters for temperatures between 4 and 9 K at a stagnation pressure of 2 MPa. We observe a dependency of the velocity of the droplets on mass per charge, especially at the lowest temperatures of the investigated range, and values 20% lower than those known from the literature. Below 6 K, a large deviation from the literature is also found for the average droplet sizes. This information has to be taken into consideration in future experiments where large, charged droplets are sought to produce large dopant clusters. Possible origins for this deviation are discussed in the text.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- F Laimer
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| | - F Zappa
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria.,Departamento de Física-ICE, Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Campus Universitário, 36036-900 Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - P Scheier
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Pandey R, Tran S, Zhang J, Yao Y, Kong W. Bimodal velocity and size distributions of pulsed superfluid helium droplet beams. J Chem Phys 2021; 154:134303. [PMID: 33832230 PMCID: PMC8018796 DOI: 10.1063/5.0047158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2021] [Accepted: 03/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
We report detailed measurements of velocities and sizes of superfluid helium droplets produced from an Even-Lavie pulse valve at stagnation pressures of 20-60 atm and temperatures between 5.7 and 18.0 K. By doping neutral droplets with Rhodamine 6G cations produced from an electrospray ionization source and detecting the positively charged droplets at two different locations along the beam path, we determine the velocities of the different groups of droplets. By subjecting the doped droplet beam to a retardation field, size distributions can then be analyzed. We discover that at stagnation temperatures above 8.0 K, a single group of droplets is observed at both locations, but at 8.0 K and below, two different groups of droplets with different velocities are detectable. The slower group, considered from fragmentation of liquid helium, cannot be deterred by the retardation voltage at 9 kV, implying an exceedingly large size. The faster group, considered from condensation of gaseous helium, has a bimodal distribution when the stagnation temperatures are below 12.3 K at 20 and 40 atm, or 16.1 K at 60 atm. We also report similar size measurements using low energy electrons for impact ionization, and this latter method can be used for facile in situ characterization of pulsed droplet beams. The mechanism of the bimodal size distribution of the condensation group and the reason for the coexistence of both the condensation and fragmentation groups remain elusive.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rahul Pandey
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331-4003, USA
| | - Steven Tran
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331-4003, USA
| | - Jie Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331-4003, USA
| | - Yuzhong Yao
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331-4003, USA
| | - Wei Kong
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331-4003, USA
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
González-Lezana T, Echt O, Gatchell M, Bartolomei M, Campos-Martínez J, Scheier P. Solvation of ions in helium. INT REV PHYS CHEM 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/0144235x.2020.1794585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tomás González-Lezana
- Instituto de Física Fundamental, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas IFF-CSIC, Madrid, Spain
| | - Olof Echt
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
- Department of Physics, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, USA
| | - Michael Gatchell
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
- Department of Physics, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Massimiliano Bartolomei
- Instituto de Física Fundamental, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas IFF-CSIC, Madrid, Spain
| | - José Campos-Martínez
- Instituto de Física Fundamental, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas IFF-CSIC, Madrid, Spain
| | - Paul Scheier
- Institut für Ionenphysik und Angewandte Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Zhang J, Bradford SD, Kong W, Zhang C, Xue L. Electron diffraction of CS 2 nanoclusters embedded in superfluid helium droplets. J Chem Phys 2020; 152:224306. [PMID: 32534524 PMCID: PMC7292678 DOI: 10.1063/5.0011340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2020] [Accepted: 05/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
We report experimental results from electron diffraction of CS2 nanoclusters embedded in superfluid helium droplets. From detailed measurements of the sizes of doped droplets, we can model the doping statistics under different experimental conditions, thereby obtaining the range of cluster sizes of CS2. Using a least squares fitting procedure, we can then determine the structures and contributions of dimers, trimers, and tetramers embedded in small droplets. While dimers prefer a stable gas phase structure, trimers and tetramers seem to forgo the highly symmetric gas phase structures and prefer compact cuts from the crystalline structure of CS2. In larger droplets containing more than 12 CS2 monomers, the diffraction profile is consistent with a three-dimensional nanostructure of bulk CS2. This work demonstrates the feasibility of electron diffraction for in situ monitoring of nanocluster formation in superfluid helium droplets.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jie Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, USA
| | - Stephen D. Bradford
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, USA
| | - Wei Kong
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, USA
| | - Chengzhu Zhang
- Department of Statistics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, USA
| | - Lan Xue
- Department of Statistics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, USA
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Brieuc F, Schran C, Uhl F, Forbert H, Marx D. Converged quantum simulations of reactive solutes in superfluid helium: The Bochum perspective. J Chem Phys 2020; 152:210901. [DOI: 10.1063/5.0008309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Fabien Brieuc
- Lehrstuhl für Theoretische Chemie, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany
| | - Christoph Schran
- Lehrstuhl für Theoretische Chemie, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany
| | - Felix Uhl
- Lehrstuhl für Theoretische Chemie, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany
| | - Harald Forbert
- Center for Solvation Science ZEMOS, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany
| | - Dominik Marx
- Lehrstuhl für Theoretische Chemie, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Lei L, Yao Y, Zhang J, Tronrud D, Kong W, Zhang C, Xue L, Dontot L, Rapacioli M. Electron Diffraction of Pyrene Nanoclusters Embedded in Superfluid Helium Droplets. J Phys Chem Lett 2020; 11:724-729. [PMID: 31884792 PMCID: PMC7104692 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.9b03603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
We report electron diffraction of pyrene nanoclusters embedded in superfluid helium droplets. Using a least-squares fitting procedure, we have been able to separate the contribution of helium from those of the pyrene nanoclusters and determine the most likely structures for dimers and trimers. We confirm that pyrene dimers form a parallel double-layer structure with an interlayer distance of 3.5 Å and suggest that pyrene trimers form a sandwich structure but that the molecular planes are not completely parallel. The relative contributions of the dimers and trimers are ∼6:1. This work is an extension of our effort of solving structures of biological molecules using serial single-molecule electron diffraction imaging. The success of electron diffraction from an all-light-atom sample embedded in helium droplets offers reassuring evidence of the feasibility of this approach.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lei Lei
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, United States
| | - Yuzhong Yao
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, United States
| | - Jie Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, United States
| | - Dale Tronrud
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, United States
| | - Wei Kong
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, United States
| | - Chengzhu Zhang
- Department of Statistics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, United States
| | - Lan Xue
- Department of Statistics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, United States
| | - Léo Dontot
- Laboratoire de Chimie et Physique Quantiques, LCPQ/IRSAMC, UMR5626, Université de Toulouse (UPS) and CNRS, 118 Route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Mathias Rapacioli
- Laboratoire de Chimie et Physique Quantiques, LCPQ/IRSAMC, UMR5626, Université de Toulouse (UPS) and CNRS, 118 Route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse, France
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Nardi F, Fitchev P, Brooks KM, Franco OE, Cheng K, Hayward SW, Welte MA, Crawford SE. Lipid droplet velocity is a microenvironmental sensor of aggressive tumors regulated by V-ATPase and PEDF. J Transl Med 2019; 99:1822-1834. [PMID: 31409893 PMCID: PMC7289525 DOI: 10.1038/s41374-019-0296-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2019] [Revised: 06/04/2019] [Accepted: 06/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Lipid droplets (LDs) utilize microtubules (MTs) to participate in intracellular trafficking of cargo proteins. Cancer cells accumulate LDs and acidify their tumor microenvironment (TME) by increasing the proton pump V-ATPase. However, it is not known whether these two metabolic changes are mechanistically related or influence LD movement. We postulated that LD density and velocity are progressively increased with tumor aggressiveness and are dependent on V-ATPase and the lipolysis regulator pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF). LD density was assessed in human prostate cancer (PCa) specimens across Gleason scores (GS) 6-8. LD distribution and velocity were analyzed in low and highly aggressive tumors using live-cell imaging and in cells exposed to low pH and/or treated with V-ATPase inhibitors. The MT network was disrupted and analyzed by α-tubulin staining. LD density positively correlated with advancing GS in human tumors. Acidification promoted peripheral localization and clustering of LDs. Highly aggressive prostate, breast, and pancreatic cell lines had significantly higher maximum LD velocity (LDVmax) than less aggressive and benign cells. LDVmax was MT-dependent and suppressed by blocking V-ATPase directly or indirectly with PEDF. Upon lowering pH, LDs moved to the cell periphery and carried metalloproteinases. These results suggest that acidification of the TME can alter intracellular LD movement and augment velocity in cancer. Restoration of PEDF or blockade of V-ATPase can normalize LD distribution and decrease velocity. This study identifies V-ATPase and PEDF as new modulators of LD trafficking in the cancer microenvironment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Nardi
- Department of Surgery, NorthShore University Research Institute, Affiliate of University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Evanston, IL 60201
| | - Philip Fitchev
- Department of Surgery, NorthShore University Research Institute, Affiliate of University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Evanston, IL 60201
| | - Kyrsten M. Brooks
- Department of Pathology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 1402 South Grand Blvd., Saint Louis, MO 63104
| | - Omar E. Franco
- Department of Surgery, NorthShore University Research Institute, Affiliate of University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Evanston, IL 60201
| | - Kevin Cheng
- Department of Pathology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 1402 South Grand Blvd., Saint Louis, MO 63104
| | - Simon W. Hayward
- Department of Surgery, NorthShore University Research Institute, Affiliate of University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Evanston, IL 60201
| | - Michael A. Welte
- Department of Biology, University of Rochester, RC Box 270211, Rochester, NY 14627
| | - Susan E. Crawford
- Department of Surgery, NorthShore University Research Institute, Affiliate of University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Evanston, IL 60201,Department of Pathology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 1402 South Grand Blvd., Saint Louis, MO 63104
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Alghamdi M, Zhang J, Kong W. Doping with multiple cations and failure of charge transfer in large ionized helium droplets. J Chem Phys 2019; 151:134307. [PMID: 31594345 DOI: 10.1063/1.5123735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
We report experimental observations of aniline (A) cations and He2 + when aniline is doped into ionized helium droplets. Large droplets containing 108 atoms are bombarded by energetic electrons, resulting in more than one positive charge in one droplet. When aniline encounters the charged droplets, some are ionized via charge transfer, while others can remain neutral in the presence of He2 + when the mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) of the droplet is sufficiently large. Upon resonant excitation of the dopant An or An + (n ≥ 1), He2 + can be ejected. The excitation spectrum of He2 + becomes a juxtaposition of the spectra of An and An +. Moreover, an anticorrelation between the yields of He2 + and A+ is observed with increasing energies of the ionizing electrons. We attribute this result to the combined effect of reduction in m/z of the droplets and the different locations of He2 + and neutral An. Limited by the penetration depths of the ionizing electrons and further assisted by the Coulomb repulsion of coexisting cations, He2 + is located within 20 nm of the surface, while neutral An has an average position inside a large droplet. Upon resonant excitation of the interior An, He2 + is preferentially ejected. With increasing energies of the colliding electrons, the m/z of the droplets are reduced, leading to less effective charge shielding and more effective charge transfer, until ultimately, all He2 + can be neutralized to form A+.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maha Alghamdi
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331-4003, USA
| | - Jie Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331-4003, USA
| | - Wei Kong
- Department of Chemistry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331-4003, USA
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Abstract
We report suppression of multiphoton ionization (MPI) of aniline doped large superfluid helium droplets containing over 5 × 106 atoms. In contrast, surface-bound sodium atoms and dimers are readily desorbed and ionized. Adequacy of the experimental conditions is also confirmed from ejection of embedded aniline cations from smaller droplets containing multiple cations, and MPI of gaseous aniline. The photoelectrons have a mean-free-path of less than 1 nm and a thermalization distance of 10 nm. In a droplet with a diameter of over 70 nm, effective charge recombination within the droplet is expected.
Collapse
|