Symmetry of molecular Rydberg states revealed by XUV transient absorption spectroscopy

Fast phase retrieval for broadband attosecond pulse characterization

Efficient characterization method for broadband attosecond pulses has become more and more essential, since attosecond pulses with bandwidth spanning few-hundreds electron-volts have been generated. Here we propose a fast phase retrieval algorithm for broadband attosecond pulse characterization with an omega oscillation filtering technique. We introduce a new error function to improve the accuracy of the retrieved phases. More importantly, it can be solved by the steepest descent methods with iterative algorithm, which is much faster than genetic algorithm adopted previously. An experimental spectrogram for isolated attosecond pulses with photon energy covering 52-127 eV and a pulse width of 71 as was successfully retrieved with this method as demonstrated. The proposed technique will help provide real-time feedback on atto-chirp compensation for ultrashort isolated attosecond pulse generation.

Effects of Autoionizing Resonances on Wave-Packet Dynamics Studied by Time-Resolved Photoelectron Spectroscopy

We report a combined experimental and theoretical study on the effect of autoionizing resonances in time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy. The coherent excitation of N_{2} by ∼14.15  eV extreme-ultraviolet photons prepares a superposition of three dominant adjacent vibrational levels (v^{'}=14-16) in the valence b^{'} ^{1}Σ_{u}^{+} state, which are probed by the absorption of two or three near-infrared photons (800 nm). The superposition manifests itself as coherent oscillations in the measured photoelectron spectra. A quantum-mechanical simulation confirms that two autoionizing Rydberg states converging to the excited A ^{2}Π_{u} and B ^{2}Σ_{u}^{+} N_{2}^{+} cores are accessed by the resonant absorption of near-infrared photons. We show that these resonances apply different filters to the observation of the vibrational wave packet, which results in different phases and amplitudes of the oscillating photoelectron signal depending on the nature of the autoionizing resonance. This work clarifies the importance of resonances in time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy and particularly reveals the phase of vibrational quantum beats as a powerful observable for characterizing the properties of such resonances.

Characterizing coherences in chemical dynamics with attosecond time-resolved x-ray absorption spectroscopy

Coherence can drive wave-like motion of electrons and nuclei in photoexcited systems, which can yield fast and efficient ways to exert materials’ functionalities beyond the thermodynamic limit. The search for coherent phenomena has been a central topic in chemical physics although their direct characterization is often elusive. Here, we highlight recent advances in time-resolved x-ray absorption spectroscopy (tr-XAS) to investigate coherent phenomena, especially those that utilize the eminent light source of isolated attosecond pulses. The unparalleled time and state sensitivities of tr-XAS in tandem with the unique element specificity render the method suitable to study valence electronic dynamics in a wide variety of materials. The latest studies have demonstrated the capabilities of tr-XAS to characterize coupled electronic–structural coherence in small molecules and coherent light–matter interactions of core-excited excitons in solids. We address current opportunities and challenges in the exploration of coherent phenomena, with potential applications for energy- and bio-related systems, potential crossings, strongly driven solids, and quantum materials. With the ongoing developments in both theory and light sources, tr-XAS holds great promise for revealing the role of coherences in chemical dynamics.

Multiphoton Resonance in Attosecond Transient Absorption

We present the theory and simulation of attosecond transient absorption in helium atoms under the single-active-electron approximation. This study investigates the attosecond dynamics of intrinsic atomic states that interact with a field comprising vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) and extreme ultraviolet (XUV) fields. The absorption spectrum of the helium atom is obtained from the response function, which is constructed by numerically solving the three-dimensional time-dependent Schrödinger equation. We observe a fine structure near the intrinsic atomic level, which is modulated with a 0.2 fs period. Based on high-order time-dependent perturbation theory, the frequency-dependent phase of the dipole response induced by the VUV and XUV fields is analytically obtained, and the fine structure is well explained by the phase difference. In addition, the absorption fringes are dependent on the chirp of the VUV field. This study investigates the features of the attosecond transient absorption in the VUV region, which may have valuable applications in the study of ultrafast phenomena in atoms, molecules, and solids.

Removal of correlated background in a high-order harmonic transient absorption spectra with principal component regression

We demonstrate a 40x mean noise power reduction (NPR) in core-to-valence extreme ultraviolet (XUV) femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy with a high harmonic generation (HHG) light source. An adaptive iteratively reweighted principal component regression (airPCR) is used to analyze and suppress spectrally correlated HHG intensity fluctuations. The technique requires significantly less user input and leads to a higher mean NPR than a previously introduced edge-pixel PCR method that relies on the manual identification of signal-free spectral regions. Both techniques are applied in a time-resolved XUV absorption study of the 2snp¹P^o (n ≥ 2) autoionizing Rydberg states of helium, demonstrating sub-10^-3 optical density sensitivity.

Coupled nuclear-electronic decay dynamics of O2 inner valence excited states revealed by attosecond XUV wave-mixing spectroscopy

Multiple Rydberg series converging to the O2+c4Σ-u state, accessed by 20-25 eV extreme ultraviolet (XUV) light, serve as important model systems for the competition between nuclear dissociation and electronic autoionization. The dynamics of the lowest member of these series, the 3sσg state around 21 eV, has been challenging to study owing to its ultra-short lifetime (<10 fs). Here, we apply transient wave-mixing spectroscopy with an attosecond XUV pulse to investigate the decay dynamics of this electronic state. Lifetimes of 5.8 ± 0.5 fs and 4.5 ± 0.7 fs at 95% confidence intervals are obtained for v = 0 and v = 1 vibrational levels of the 3s Rydberg state, respectively. A theoretical treatment of predissociation and electronic autoionization finds that these lifetimes are dominated by electronic autoionization. The strong dependence of the electronic autoionization rate on the internuclear distance because of two ionic decay channels that cross the 3s Rydberg state results in the different lifetimes of the two vibrational levels. The calculated lifetimes are highly sensitive to the location of the 3s potential with respect to the decay channels; by slight adjustment of the location, values of 6.2 and 5.0 fs are obtained computationally for the v = 0 and v = 1 levels, respectively, in good agreement with experiment. Overall, an intriguing picture of the coupled nuclear-electronic dynamics is revealed by attosecond XUV wave-mixing spectroscopy, indicating that the decay dynamics are not a simple competition between isolated autoionization and predissociation processes.