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Center for Nonlinear Studies |
Ultrafast scattering using X-ray Free-Electron Lasers (XFELs) is an exciting development in AMO physics and chemical reaction dynamics [1], made possible by new x-ray free-electron lasers such as the LCLS in California. The elastic component of the scattering provides a direct probe of structural dynamics, as demonstrated in recent experiments [2,3] (Fig. 1a). The experiments are supported by ab initio electronic structure calculations and quantum molecular dynamics simulations. From a theoretical point of view, the standard expressions for X-ray scattering are modified by the quantum superposition inherent in ultrafast experiments [4]. I will demonstrate how the wavepacket limits the spatial resolution attainable in diffraction experiments [5] (see Fig. 1b), and discuss how interference effects might make it possible to characterize electronic coherences during the dynamics
Host: Enrique Batista