Publications

L. Varvarezos, J. Delgado-Guerrero, M. Di Fraia, T. J. Kelly, A. Palacios, C. Callegari, A. L. Cavalieri, R. Coffee, M. Danailov, P. Decleva, A. Demidovich, L. DiMauro, S. Düsterer, L. Giannessi, W. Helml, M. Ilchen, R. Kienberger, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, R. Moshammer, C. Pedersini, O. Plekan, K. C. Prince, A. Simoncig, A. Schletter, K. Ueda, M. Wurzer, M. Zangrando, F. Martín, and J. T. Costello

An open-loop control scheme of molecular fragmentation based on transient molecular alignment combined with single-photon ionization induced by a short-wavelength free electron laser (FEL) is demonstrated for the acetylene cation. Photoelectron spectra are recorded, complementing the ion yield measurements, to demonstrate that such control is the consequence of changes in the electronic response with molecular orientation relative to the ionizing field. We show that stable C₂H₂+ cations are mainly produced when the molecules are parallel or nearly parallel to the FEL polarization, while the hydrogen fragmentation channel (C₂H₂+ → C₂H+ + H) predominates when the molecule is perpendicular to that direction, thus allowing one to distinguish between the two photochemical processes. The experimental findings are supported by state-of-the art theoretical calculations.

J. Chem. Phys. Lett. 14, 24 (2023)                                               

E. V. Gryzlova, P. Carpeggiani, M. M. Popova, M. D. Kiselev, N. Douguet, M. Reduzzi, M. Negro, A. Comby, H. Ahmadi, V. Wanie, M. C. Castrovilli, A. Fischer, P. Eng-Johnsson, M. Meyer, K. Bartschat, S. M. Burkov, T. Csizmadia, M. Dumergue, S. Kühn, N. G. Harshitha, M. Fule, F. Aeenehvand, F. Stienkemeier, D. Iablonskyi, K. Ueda, P. Finetti, M. Zangrando, N. Mahne, K. L. Ishikawa, O. Plekan, K. C. Prince, E. Allaria, L. Giannessi, C. Callegari, A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo, and G. Sansone

In coherent control schemes, pathways connecting an initial and a final state can be independently controlled by manipulating the complex amplitudes of their transition matrix elements. For paths characterized by the absorption of multiple photons, these quantities depend on the magnitude and phase between the intermediate steps, and are expected to be strongly affected by the presence of resonances. We investigate the coherent control of the photoemission process in neon using a phase-controlled two-color extreme ultraviolet pulse with frequency in proximity of an excited energy state. Using helium as a reference, we show that the presence of such a resonance in neon modifies the amplitude and phase of the asymmetric emission of photoelectrons. Theoretical simulations based on perturbation theory are in fair agreement with the experimental observations.

Phys. Rev. Research 4, 033231 (2022)

D. E. Rivas, S. Serkez, T. M. Baumann, R. Boll, M. K. Czwalinna, S. Dold, A. de Fanis, N. Gerasimova, P. Grychtol, B. Lautenschlager, M. Lederer, T. Jezynksi, D. Kane, T. Mazza, J. Meier, J. Muller, F. Pallas, D. Rompotis, P. Schmidt, S. Schulz, S. Usenko, S. Venkatesan, J. Wang, and M. Meyer

Ultrafast X-ray spectroscopies require flexible X-ray properties together with high temporal and spectral resolution. Here, we demonstrate simultaneous sub-20 fs and sub-eV resolutions for pump/probe experiments, without the need for additional photon arrival-time monitors.

Optica 9, 4, 439 (2022)

P. K. Maroju, C. Grazioli, M. Di Fraia, M. Moioli, D. Ertel, H. Ahmadi, O. Plekan, P. Finetti, E. Allaria, L. Giannessi, G. De Ninno, A. A. Lutman, R. J. Squibb, R. Feifel, P. Carpeggiani, M. Reduzzi, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, S. Bengtsson, N. Ibrakovic, E. R. Simpson, J. Mauritsson, T. Csizmadia, M. Dumergue, S. Kühn, H. N. Gopalakrishnan, D. You, K. Ueda, M. Labeye, J. E. Bækhøj, K. J. Schafer, E. V. Gryzlova, A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo, K. C. Prince, C. Callegari, and G. Sansone

Free-electron lasers (FELs) can produce radiation in the short wavelength range extending from the extreme ultraviolet (XUV) to the X-rays with a few to a few tens of femtoseconds pulse duration. These facilities have enabled significant breakthroughs in the field of atomic, molecular, and optical physics, implementing different schemes based on two-color photoionization mechanisms. In this article, we present the generation of attosecond pulse trains (APTs) at the seeded FEL FERMI using the beating of multiple phase-locked harmonics. We demonstrate the complex attosecond waveform shaping of the generated APTs, exploiting the ability to manipulate independently the amplitudes and the phases of the harmonics. The described generalized attosecond waveform synthesis technique with an arbitrary number of phase-locked harmonics will allow the generation of sub-100 as pulses with programmable electric fields.

Appl. Sci. 11, 9791 (2021)

P. K. Maroju, C. Grazioli, M. Di Fraia, M. Moioli, D. Ertel, H. Ahmadi, O. Plekan, P. Finetti, E. Allaria, L. Giannessi, G. De Ninno, R. J. Squibb, R. Feifel, P. Carpeggiani, M. Reduzzi, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, S. Bengtsson, N. Ibrakovic, E. R. Simpson, J. Mauritsson, T. Csizmadia, M. Dumergue, S. Kühn, N. G. Harshitha, D. You, K. Ueda, M. Labeye, J. E. Baekhoj, K. J. Schafer, E. V. Gryzlova, A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo, K. C. Prince, C. Callegari, and G. Sansone

The generation of attosecond pulse trains at free-electron lasers opens new opportunities in ultrafast science, as it gives access, for the first time, to reproducible, programmable, extreme ultraviolet (XUV) waveforms with high intensity. In this work, we present a detailed analysis of the theoretical model underlying the temporal characterization of the attosecond pulse trains recently generated at the free-electron laser FERMI. In particular, the validity of the approximations used for the correlated analysis of the photoelectron spectra generated in the two-color photoionization experiments are thoroughly discussed. The ranges of validity of the assumptions, in connection with the main experimental parameters, are derived.

New J. Phys. 23, 043046 (2021)

P. Grychtol, D. E. Rivas, T. M. Baumann, R. Boll, A. De Fanid, B. Erk, M. Ilchen, J. Liu, T. Mazza, J. Montano, J. Müller, V. Music, Y. Ovcharenko, N. Rennhack, A. Rouzee, P. Schmidt, S. Schulz, S. Usenko, R. Wagner, P. Ziolkowski, H. Schlarb, J. Grünert, N. Kabachnik and M. Meyer

This contribution presents the initial characterization of the pump-probe performance at the Small Quantum Systems (SQS) instrument of the European X-ray Free Electron Laser. It is demonstrated that time-resolved experiments can be performed by measuring the X-ray/optical cross-correlation exploiting the laser-assisted Auger decay in neon. Applying time-of-arrival corrections based on simultaneous spectral encoding measurements allow us to significantly improve the temporal resolution of this experiment. These results pave the way for ultrafast pump-probe investigations of gaseous media at the SQS instrument combining intense and tunable soft X-rays with versatile optical laser capabilities.

Optics Express 29 (23), 37429 (2021)

D. C. Haynes, M. Wurzer, A. Schletter, A. Al-Haddad, C. Blaga, C. Bostedt, J. Bozek, H. Bromberger, M. Bucher, A. Camper, S. Carron, R. Coffee, J. T. Costello, L. F. DiMauro, Y. Ding, K. Ferguson, I. Grguraš, W. Helml, M. C. Hoffmann, M. Ilchen, S. Jalas, N. M. Kabachnik, A. K. Kazansky, R. Kienberger, A. R. Maier, T. Maxwell, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, H. Park, J. Robinson, C. Roedig, H. Schlarb, R. Singla, F. Tellkamp, P. A. Walker, K. Zhang, G. Doumy, C. Behrens, A. L. Cavalieri

Intense X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) can rapidly excite matter, leaving it in inherently unstable states that decay on femtosecond timescales. The relaxation occurs primarily via Auger emission, so excited-state observations are constrained by Auger decay. In situ measurement of this process is therefore crucial, yet it has thus far remained elusive in XFELs owing to inherent timing and phase jitter, which can be orders of magnitude larger than the timescale of Auger decay. Here we develop an approach termed ‘self-referenced attosecond streaking’ that provides subfemtosecond resolution in spite of jitter, enabling time-domain measurement of the delay between photoemission and Auger emission in atomic neon excited by intense, femtosecond pulses from an XFEL. Using a fully quantum-mechanical description that treats the ionization, core-hole formation and Auger emission as a single process, the observed delay yields an Auger decay lifetime of 2.2^+0.2_−0.3 fs for the KLL decay channel.

Nature Physics 17, 512 (2021)

Lazaros Varvarezos, Stefan Düsterer, Maksim D. Kiselev, Rebecca Boll, Cedric Bomme, Alberto De Fanis, Benjamin Erk, Christopher Passow, Sergei M. Burkov, Gregor Hartmann, Markus Ilchen, Per Johnsson, Thomas J. Kelly, Bastian Manschwetus, Tommaso Mazza, Michael Meyer, Dimitrios Rompotis, Oleg Zatsarinny, Elena V. Gryzlova, Alexei N. Grum-Grzhimailo, and John T. Costello

We report angle-resolved measurements on photoelectrons emitted upon near-threshold two-photon double ionization (TPDI) of Kr irradiated by free-electron laser (FEL) pulses. These photoelectron angular distributions (PADs) are compared with the results of semirelativistic R-matrix calculations. As reported by Augustin et al. [Phys. Rev. A 98, 033408 (2018)], it is found that the presence of autoionizing resonances within the bandwidth of the exciting FEL pulse strongly influences the PADs. In contrast to measurements on lower-Z targets such as Ne and Ar, the larger spin-orbit interaction, inherent in 4p-subshell hole states of Kr, permits us to resolve and study PADs associated with some of the fine-structure components of the Kr⁺ and Kr²⁺ ions.

Phys. Rev. A 103, 022832 (2021)

Marek Wieland, Nikolay M. Kabachnik, Markus Drescher, Yunpei Deng, Yunieski Arbelo, Nikola Stojanovic, Bernd Steffen, Juliane Roensch-Schulenburg, Rasmus Ischebeck, Alexander Malyzhenkov, Eduard Prat, and Pavle Juranić

A fast and robust, yet simple, method has been developed for the immediate characterization of x-ray pulse durations via IR/THz streaking that uses the center of energy (COE) of the photoelectron spectrum for the evaluation. The manuscript presents theory and numerical models demonstrating that the maximum COEs shift as a function of the pulse duration and compares them to existing data for validation. It further establishes that the maximum COE can be derived from two COE measurements set at a phase of π/2 apart. The theory, model, and data agree with each other very well, and they present a way to measure pulse durations ranging from sub-fs to tens of fs on-the-fly with a fairly simple experimental setup.

Optics Express Vol. 29, Issue 21, pp. 32739-32754 (2021)

M. D. Kiselev, P. A. Carpeggiani, E. V. Gryzlova, S. M. Burkov, M. Reduzzi, A. Dubrouil, D. Faccial, M. Negro, K. Ueda, F. Frassetto, F. Stienkemeier, Y. Ovcharenko, M. Meyer, O. Plekan, P. Finetti, K. C. Prince, C. Callegari, G. Sansone, and A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo

Autoionizing hole states with electron configuration nsnp⁵mp are studied in Ar⁺and Kr⁺. Total and partial photoionization cross sections, photoelectron spectra and photoelectron angular distributions in the region of the resonances are obtained theoretically in extensive ^R-matrix calculations. The states of Ar⁺are observed by means of excitation by a free-electron laser operating in the vacuum- and extreme-ultraviolet wavelength regime combined with angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy. Fine tuning of the photon energy allows scanning of the resonances and the observation of the shape of the partial cross section ratio, as well as the asymmetry parameter of the angular distribution of the photoelectrons. The calculations are in good agreement with the experimental data.

J. Phys. B 53, 244006 (2020)

P. K. Maroju, C. Grazioli, M. Di Fraia, M. Moioli, D. Ertel, H. Ahmadi, O. Plekan, P. Finetti, E. Allaria, L. Giannessi, G. De Ninno, C. Spezzani, G. Penco, A. Demidovich, M. Danailov, R. Borghes, G. Kourousias, C. E. Sanches Dos Reis, F. Bill´e, A. A. Lutman, R. J. Squibb, R. Feifel, P. Carpeggiani, M. Reduzzi, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, S. Bengtsson, N. Ibrakovic, E. R. Simpson, J. Mauritsson, T. Csizmadia, M. Dumergue, S. Kühn, H. Ng, D. You, K. Ueda, M. Labeye, J. Egebjerg Bækhøj, K. J. Schafer, E. V. Gryzlova, A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo, K. C. Prince,C. Callegari, and G. Sansone

Attosecond pulses are central to the investigation of valence- and core-electron dynamics on their natural timescales^1,2,3. The reproducible generation and characterization of attosecond waveforms has been demonstrated so far only through the process of high-order harmonic generation^4,5,6,7. Several methods for shaping attosecond waveforms have been proposed, including the use of metallic filters^8,9, multilayer mirrors¹⁰ and manipulation of the driving field¹¹. However, none of these approaches allows the flexible manipulation of the temporal characteristics of the attosecond waveforms, and they suffer from the low conversion efficiency of the high-order harmonic generation process. Free-electron lasers, by contrast, deliver femtosecond, extreme-ultraviolet and X-ray pulses with energies ranging from tens of microjoules to a few millijoules^12,13. Recent experiments have shown that they can generate subfemtosecond spikes, but with temporal characteristics that change shot-to-shot^14,15,16. Here we report reproducible generation of high-energy (microjoule level) attosecond waveforms using a seeded free-electron laser¹⁷. We demonstrate amplitude and phase manipulation of the harmonic components of an attosecond pulse train in combination with an approach for its temporal reconstruction. The results presented here open the way to performing attosecond time-resolved experiments with free-electron lasers.

Nature 578, 386–391(2020)

D. You, K. Ueda, E. V. Gryzlova, A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo, M. M. Popova, E. I. Staroselskaya, O. Tugs, Y. Orimo, T. Sato, K. L. Ishikawa, P. A. Carpeggiani, T. Csizmadia, M. Füle, G. Sansone, P. K. Maroju, A. D'Elia, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, C. Callegari, M. Di Fraia, O. Plekan, R. Richter, L. Giannessi, E. Allaria, G. De Ninno, M. Trovo, L. Badano, B. Diviacco, G. Gaio, D. Gauthier, N. Mirian, G. Penco, P. R. Ribic, S. Spampinati, C. Spezzani, and K. C. Prince

Quantum mechanically, photoionization can be fully described by the complex photoionization amplitudes that describe the transition between the ground state and the continuum state. Knowledge of the value of the phase of these amplitudes has been a central interest in photoionization studies and newly developing attosecond science, since the phase can reveal important information about phenomena such as electron correlation. We present a new attosecond-precision interferometric method of angle-resolved measurement for the phase of the photoionization amplitudes, using two phase-locked extreme ultraviolet pulses of frequency ω and 2ω, from a free-electron laser. Phase differences Δ˜η between one- and two-photon ionization channels, averaged over multiple wave packets, are extracted for neon 2p electrons as a function of the emission angle at photoelectron energies 7.9, 10.2, and 16.6 eV. Δ˜η is nearly constant for emission parallel to the electric vector but increases at 10.2 eV for emission perpendicular to the electric vector. We model our observations with both perturbation and ab initio theory and find excellent agreement. In the existing method for attosecond measurement, reconstruction of attosecond beating by interference of two-photon transitions (RABBITT), a phase difference between two-photon pathways involving absorption and emission of an infrared photon is extracted. Our method can be used for extraction of a phase difference between single-photon and two-photon pathways and provides a new tool for attosecond science, which is complementary to RABBITT.

Phys. Rev. X 10, 031070 (2020)

Mamuna Anwar , Marek Wieland and Markus Drescher

In this paper we report on a velocity map imaging spectrometer with the implementation of an on-axis geometry where the electrons travel parallel to the ionizing beam towards the detector. Owing to a usually low photon flux from table-top soft x-ray sources, the instrument is optimized for high detector efficiency and high target density. The collinear design offers the possibility to freely choose the state and orientation of the polarization of light fields in streaking experiments. First results of an experiment using THz pulses for streaking using a Xe gas target are presented and compared to the simulated performance of the spectrometer.

Meas. Sci. Technol. 31, 035901 (2020)

Rosen Ivanov , Ivette J Bermúdez Macias, Jia Liu , Günter Brenner, Juliane Roensch-Schulenburg, Gabor Kurdi, Ulrike Frühling, Katharina Wenig, Sophie Walther, Anastasios Dimitriou, Markus Drescher, Irina P Sazhina, Andrey K Kazansky, Nikolay M Kabachnik, and Stefan Düsterer

Ultra-short extreme ultraviolet pulses from the free-electron laser FLASH are characterized using terahertz-field driven streaking. Measurements at different ultra-short extreme ultraviolet wavelengths and pulse durations as well as numerical simulations were performed to explore the application range and accuracy of the method. For the simulation of streaking, a standard classical approach is used which is compared to quantum mechanical theory, based on strong field approximation. Various factors limiting the temporal resolution of the presented terahertz streaking setup are investigated and discussed. Special attention is paid to the cases of very short (∼10 fs) and long (up to ∼350 fs) pulses.

J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 53, 184004 (2020)

Murali Krishna Ganesa Subramanian, Roman Brannath, Ralph Welsch, Robin Santra, and Markus Drescher

We demonstrate that an external terahertz (THz) field enables the formation of interference between two distinct Auger pathways leading to the same final ionic state. The kinetic energy of Auger electrons ejected from either of two spin-orbit split one-hole states of magnesium cations is recorded. In the presence of the THz field, a clear oscillatory structure in the Auger spectrum emerges, which we find to be in very good agreement with an analytical model based on perturbation theory. For this interference to occur, the THz field has to chirp the energy of both Auger electrons and photoelectrons simultaneously, in order to create states with indistinguishable quantum properties.

Physical Review A 102, 022807 (2020)

M. Di Fraia, O. Plekan, C. Callegari, K. C. Prince, L. Giannessi, E. Allaria, L. Badano, G. De Ninno, M. Trovò, B. Diviacco, D. Gauthier, N. Mirian, G. Penco, P. R. Ribič, S. Spampinati, C. Spezzani, G. Gaio, Y. Orimo, O. Tugs, T. Sato, K. L. Ishikawa, P. A. Carpeggiani, T. Csizmadia, M. Füle, G. Sansone, P. K. Maroju, A. D’Elia, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, E. V. Gryzlova, A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo, D. You, and K. Ueda

Intense, mutually coherent beams of multiharmonic extreme ultraviolet light can now be created using seeded free-electron lasers, and the phase difference between harmonics can be tuned with attosecond accuracy. However, the absolute value of the phase is generally not determined. We present a method for determining precisely the absolute phase relationship of a fundamental wavelength and its second harmonic, as well as the amplitude ratio. Only a few easily calculated theoretical parameters are required in addition to the experimental data.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 123, 213904 (2019)

K. Wenig, M. Wieland, A. Baumann , S. Walther, A. Dimitriou , M. J. Prandolini , O. Schepp , I. Bermúdez Macias, M. Sumfleth , N. Stojanovic, S. Düsterer, J. Rönsch-Schulenburg, E. Zapolnova, R. Pan, M. Drescher, and U. Frühling

The ultrafast electronic decay of HCl molecules in the time domain after resonant core excitation was measured. Here, a Cl-2p core electron was promoted to the antibonding σ* orbital initiating molecular dissociation, and simultaneously, the electronic excitation relaxes via an Auger decay. For HCl, both processes compete on similar ultrashort femtosecond time scales. In order to measure the lifetime of the core hole excitation, we collinearly superimposed 40 fs soft x-ray pulses with intense terahertz (THz) radiation from the free-electron laser in Hamburg (FLASH). Electrons emitted from the molecules are accelerated (streaked) by the THz electric field where the resulting momentum change depends on the field's phase at the instant of ionization. Evaluation of a time-shift between the delay-dependent streaking spectra of photo- and Auger electrons yields a decay constant of (11 ± 2) fs for LMM Auger electrons. For further validation, the method was also applied to the MNN Auger decay of krypton. Reproduction of the value already published in the literature confirms that a temporal resolution much below the duration of the exciting x-ray pulses can be reached.

Struct. Dyn. 6, 034301 (2019)

A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo, N. Douguet, M. Meyer, and K. Bartschat

Two-color XUV plus near-IR multiphoton ionization of the helium ion by circularly polarized light is studied in the vicinity of the 3p resonance. Combining the analysis of results obtained by solving the time-dependent Schrödinger equation and that of the quasienergy spectrum of He⁺ reveals the physical mechanisms that determine the photoelectron spectra and the variation of the circular dichroism as a function of the near-IR intensity.

Phys. Rev. A 100, 033404 (2019)

L. Young, K. Ueda, M. Gühr, P. H. Bucksbaum, M. Simon, S. Mukamel, N. Rohringer, K. C. Prince, C. Masciovecchio, M. Meyer, A. Rudenko, D. Rolles, C. Bostedt, M. Fuchs, D. A. Reis, R. Santra, H. Kapteyn, M. Murnane, H. Ibrahim, F. Légaré, et. al.

X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) and table-top sources of x-rays based upon high harmonic generation (HHG) have revolutionized the field of ultrafast x-ray atomic and molecular physics, largely due to an explosive growth in capabilities in the past decade. XFELs now provide unprecedented intensity (1020 W cm−2) of x-rays at wavelengths down to ~1 Ångstrom, and HHG provides unprecedented time resolution (~50 attoseconds) and a correspondingly large coherent bandwidth at longer wavelengths. For context, timescales can be referenced to the Bohr orbital period in hydrogen atom of 150 attoseconds and the hydrogen-molecule vibrational period of 8 femtoseconds; wavelength scales can be referenced to the chemically significant carbon K-edge at a photon energy of ~280 eV (44 Ångstroms) and the bond length in methane of ~1 Ångstrom. With these modern x-ray sources one now has the ability to focus on individual atoms, even when embedded in a complex molecule, and view electronic and nuclear motion on their intrinsic scales (attoseconds and Ångstroms). These sources have enabled coherent diffractive imaging, where one can image non-crystalline objects in three dimensions on ultrafast timescales, potentially with atomic resolution. The unprecedented intensity available with XFELs has opened new fields of multiphoton and nonlinear x-ray physics where behavior of matter under extreme conditions can be explored. The unprecedented time resolution and pulse synchronization provided by HHG sources has kindled fundamental investigations of time delays in photoionization, charge migration in molecules, and dynamics near conical intersections that are foundational to AMO physics and chemistry. This roadmap coincides with the year when three new XFEL facilities, operating at Ångstrom wavelengths, opened for users (European XFEL, Swiss-FEL and PAL-FEL in Korea) almost doubling the present worldwide number of XFELs, and documents the remarkable progress in HHG capabilities since its discovery roughly 30 years ago, showcasing experiments in AMO physics and other applications. Here we capture the perspectives of 17 leading groups and organize the contributions into four categories: ultrafast molecular dynamics, multidimensional x-ray spectroscopies; high-intensity x-ray phenomena; attosecond x-ray science.

J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 51 032003 (2018)

D. Iablonskyi, K. Ueda, Kenichi L. Ishikawa, A. S. Kheifets, P. Carpeggiani, M. Reduzzi, H. Ahmadi, A. Comby, G. Sansone, T. Csizmadia, S. Kuehn, E. Ovcharenko, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, A. Fischer, C. Callegari, O. Plekan, P. Finetti, E. Allaria, E. Ferrari, E. Roussel, D. Gauthier, L. Giannessi, K. C. Prince

Single-photon laser-enabled Auger decay (spLEAD) is predicted theoretically [B. Cooper and V. Averbukh, Phys. Rev. Lett. 111, 083004 (2013)] and here we report its first experimental observation in neon. Using coherent, bichromatic free-electron laser pulses, we detect the process and coherently control the angular distribution of the emitted electrons by varying the phase difference between the two laser fields. Since spLEAD is highly sensitive to electron correlation, this is a promising method for probing both correlation and ultrafast hole migration in more complex systems.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 073203 (2017)

W. Helml, I. Grguras, P. N. Juranic, S. Düsterer, T. Mazza, A. R. Maier, N. Hartmann, M. Ilchen, G. Hartmann, L. Patthey, C. Callegari, J. T. Costello, M. Meyer, R. N. Coffee, A. L. Cavalieri, R. Kienberger

For the investigation of processes happening on the time scale of the motion of bound electrons, well-controlled X-ray pulses with durations in the few-femtosecond and even sub-femtosecond range are a necessary prerequisite. Novel free-electron lasers sources provide these ultrashort, high-brightness X-ray pulses, but their unique aspects open up concomitant challenges for their characterization on a suitable time scale. In this review paper we describe progress and results of recent work on ultrafast pulse characterization at soft and hard X-ray free-electron lasers. We report on different approaches to laser-assisted time-domain measurements, with specific focus on single-shot characterization of ultrashort X-ray pulses from self-amplified spontaneous emission-based and seeded free-electron lasers. The method relying on the sideband measurement of X-ray electron ionization in the presence of a dressing optical laser field is described first. When the X-ray pulse duration is shorter than half the oscillation period of the streaking field, few-femtosecond characterization becomes feasible via linear streaking spectroscopy. Finally, using terahertz fields alleviates the issue of arrival time jitter between streaking laser and X-ray pulse, but compromises the achievable temporal resolution. Possible solutions to these remaining challenges for single-shot, full time–energy characterization of X-ray free-electron laser pulses are proposed in the outlook at the end of the review.

Appl. Sci. 7, 915 (2017)

M. Ilchen, N. Douguet, T. Mazza, A. J. Rafipoor et. al.

Intense, circularly polarized extreme-ultraviolet and near-infrared (NIR) laser pulses are combined to double ionize atomic helium via the oriented intermediate He+(3p) resonance state. Applying angle-resolved electron spectroscopy, we find a large photon helicity dependence of the spectrum and the angular distribution of the electrons ejected from the resonance by NIR multiphoton absorption. The measured circular dichroism is unexpectedly found to vary strongly as a function of the NIR intensity. The experimental data are well described by theoretical modeling and possible mechanisms are discussed.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 013002 (2017)

S. Düsterer, G. Hartmann, F. Babies, A. Beckmann et. al.

Electron emission caused by extreme ultraviolet (XUV) radiation in the presence of a strong near infrared (NIR) field leads to multiphoton interactions that depend on several parameters. Here, a comprehensive study of the influence of the angle between the polarization directions of the NIR and XUV fields on the two-color angle-resolved photoelectron spectra of He and Ne is presented. The resulting photoelectron angular distribution strongly depends on the orientation of the NIR polarization plane with respect to that of the XUV field. The prevailing influence of the intense NIR field over the angular emission characteristics for He(1s) and Ne(2p) ionization lines is shown. The underlying processes are modeled in the frame of the strong field approximation (SFA) which shows very consistent agreement with the experiment reaffirming the power of the SFA for multicolor-multiphoton ionization in this regime.

K.C. Prince, E. Allaria, C. Callegari, R. Cucini et. al

Extreme ultraviolet and X-ray free-electron lasers (FELs) produce short-wavelength pulses with high intensity, ultrashort duration, well-defined polarization and transverse coherence, and have been utilized for many experiments previously possible only at long wavelengths: multiphoton ionization1, pumping an atomic laser2 and four-wave mixing spectroscopy3. However one important optical technique, coherent control, has not yet been demonstrated, because self-amplified spontaneous emission FELs have limited longitudinal coherence4, 5, 6, 7. Single-colour pulses from the FERMI seeded FEL are longitudinally coherent8, 9, and two-colour emission is predicted to be coherent. Here, we demonstrate the phase correlation of two colours, and manipulate it to control an experiment. Light of wavelengths 63.0 and 31.5 nm ionized neon, and we controlled the asymmetry of the photoelectron angular distribution10, 11 by adjusting the phase, with a temporal resolution of 3 as. This opens the door to new short-wavelength coherent control experiments with ultrahigh time resolution and chemical sensitivity.

T. Mazza, M. Ilchen, A. J. Rafipoor, C. Callegari et. al.

The photoelectron angular distribution and the circular dichroism in two-colour XUV+NIR above-threshold ionization of helium atoms have been investigated both experimentally and theoretically. Circularly polarized XUV pulses from the free electron laser FERMI have been spatially and temporally overlapped with circularly polarized optical pulses in the interaction region with an atomic helium jet. The emitted electrons were energy and angle analyzed by means of a velocity map imaging spectrometer. Asymmetry parameters of the angular distribution were determined and compared to theoretical predictions based on the strong field approximation and perturbation theory, respectively. For low NIR intensities, the ratio of the partial waves in the two-photon ionization process and their relative phase could be deduced. For high NIR intensities, the influence of multi-photon processes is discussed. Circular dichroism was revealed in both cases and is in good agreement with the results of the strong field approximation.

S. Usenko, M. Schüler, A. Azima, M. Jakob, L.L. Lazzarino, Y. Pavlyukh, A. Przystawik, M. Drescher, T. Laarmann, J. Berakdar

Fullerene complexes may play a key role in the design of future molecular electronics and nanostructured devices with potential applications in light harvesting using organic solar cells. Charge and energy flow in these systems is mediated by many-body effects. We studied the structure and dynamics of laser-induced multi-electron excitations in isolated C60 by two-photon photoionization as a function of excitation wavelength using a tunable fs UV laser and developed a corresponding theoretical framework on the basis of ab initio calculations. The measured resonance line width gives direct information on the excited state lifetime. From the spectral deconvolution we derive a lower limit for purely electronic relaxation on the order of Tel=10+5-3 fs. Energy dissipation towards nuclear degrees of freedom is studied with time-resolved techniques. The evaluation of the nonlinear autocorrelation trace gives a characteristic time constant of Tvib=400+-100 fs for the exponential decay. In line with the experiment, the observed transient dynamics is explained theoretically by nonadiabatic (vibronic) couplings involving the correlated electronic, the nuclear degrees of freedom (accounting for the Herzberg–Teller coupling), and their interplay.

New J. Phys. 18, 113055 (2016)

T. Mazza, A. Karamatskou, M. Ilchen, S. Bakhtiarzadeh, A. J. Rafipoor, P. O’Keeffe, T. J. Kelly, N. Walsh, J. T. Costello, M. Meyer, R. Santra

Collective behaviour is a characteristic feature in many-body systems, important for developments in fields such as magnetism, superconductivity, photonics and electronics. Recently, there has been increasing interest in the optically nonlinear response of collective excitations. Here we demonstrate how the nonlinear interaction of a many-body system with intense XUV radiation can be used as an effective probe for characterizing otherwise unresolved features of its collective response. Resonant photoionization of atomic xenon was chosen as a case study. The excellent agreement between experiment and theory strongly supports the prediction that two distinct poles underlie the giant dipole resonance. Our results pave the way towards a deeper understanding of collective behaviour in atoms, molecules and solid-state systems using nonlinear spectroscopic techniques enabled by modern short-wavelength light sources.

Nature Communications 6, Article no 6799 (2015)

T. Mazza, E.V. Gryzlova, A.N. Grum-Grzhimailo, A.K. Kazansky, N.M. Kabachnik, M. Meyer

Two-color photoionization of atomic He has been investigated by angle-integrated and angle-resolved electron spectroscopy. The combined action of intense radiation pulses from the XUV free-electron laser (FEL), FERMI or FLASH, and a synchronized optical laser on the target atom gives rise to a rich sideband structure in the photoemission spectrum. Measurements of the angular distribution parameters and the determination of the circular and linear dichroism for the two-color photoionization enable a detailed analysis of the symmetry of the outgoing electron waves and of the dynamics underlying the multi-photon processes. The experimental results are in excellent agreement with theoretical results obtained using perturbation theory (low intensity regime) and the strong field approximation. For the particular case of two-photon ionization the measurements represent an ideal tool for characterizing certain FEL parameters, here for example the degree and the sign of circular polarization. Finally, new features of the dichroism are theoretically predicted originating from the non-dipole contribution into the photoionization amplitudes.

Electr. Spectr. Rel. Phenom. 204B, 313 (2015)

T. Leitner, R. Taieb, M. Meyer, Ph. Wernet

We present polarization-controlled multiphoton two-color above-threshold ionization (TCATI) of molecules. The intensity modulations of valence photoelectron intensities of molecules arising from varying the relative orientation of the linear polarization vectors of femtosecond infrared (IR) and vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV) radiation in TCATI of the highest occupied molecular orbitals of H2O, O2, and N2 are reported. The results on the molecular systems are compared to the 3p photoionization of atomic Ar, which serves as a reference system. Modeling the large differences of the modulation amplitudes within the soft-photon approximation enables us to extract the one-photon-ionization anisotropy parameter β2. Accounting only for the first sideband due to two-photon TCATI by one VUV and one IR photon we find satisfactory agreement between experiment and simulation for H2O and O2. However, the model fails for N2 and possible reasons are discussed. We discuss that the described approach may represent an alternative way of determining photoelectron angular distributions from valence shells of molecules and indicate future directions for modeling TCATI of molecules.

Phys. Rev. A 91, 063411 (2015)

E. V. Gryzlova, P. O. Keeffe, D. Cubaynes, G. A. Garcia, L. Nahon, A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo, M. Meyer

Isotope effects in two-photon two-color photoionization are investigated by a combined theoretical and experimental study of the ionization of xenon atoms. A combination of variable polarization synchrotron and laser radiations are used to excite the 5p5(2P1/2)4f[5/2]2 autoionizing resonance via the intermediate 5p5(2P3/2)5d[3/2]1 state. Electrons and ions are detected in coincidence in order to extract the photoelectron angular distributions and the values of the linear and circular dichroism and to determine how these depend on the isotope. A complete theoretical model of the two-photon process in atoms is given in order to describe these parameters as a function of the polarization of the exciting light sources (both linear and circular polarization). Furthermore, the hyperfine depolarization due to the coupling of the electronic and nuclear angular momenta in the intermediate state is taken into account. The results of the theoretical model are in agreement with the experimental results and allow estimation of the previously unknown hyperfine structure (HFS) constant for the case of overlapping HFS levels.

S. Schulz, I. Grguraš, C. Behrens, H. Bromberger, J. T. Costello, M. K. Czwalinna, M. Felber, M. C. Hoffmann, M. Ilchen, H. Y. Liu, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, S. Pfeiffer, P. Prędki, S. Schefer, C. Schmidt, U. Wegner, H. Schlarb, A. L. Cavalieri

Many advanced applications of X-ray free-electron lasers require pulse durations and time resolutions of only a few femtoseconds. To generate these pulses and to apply them in time-resolved experiments, synchronization techniques that can simultaneously lock all independent components, including all accelerator modules and all external optical lasers, to better than the delivered free-electron laser pulse duration, are needed. Here we achieve all-optical synchronization at the soft X-ray free-electron laser FLASH and demonstrate facility-wide timing to better than 30 fs r.m.s. for 90 fs X-ray photon pulses. Crucially, our analysis indicates that the performance of this optical synchronization is limited primarily by the free-electron laser pulse duration, and should naturally scale to the sub-10 femtosecond level with shorter X-ray pulses.

Nature Communications 6, 5938 (2015)

T. Mazza, M. Ilchen, A. J. Rafipoor, C. Callegari, P. Finetti, O. Plekan, K. C. Prince, R. Richter, M. B. Danailov, A. Demidovich, G. De Ninno, C. Grazioli, R. Ivanov, N. Mahne, M. Meyer et al

Ultrafast extreme ultraviolet and X-ray free-electron lasers are set to revolutionize many domains such as bio-photonics and materials science, in a manner similar to optical lasers over the past two decades. Although their number will grow steadily over the coming decade, their complete characterization remains an elusive goal. This represents a significant barrier to their wider adoption and hence to the full realization of their potential in modern photon sciences. Although a great deal of progress has been made on temporal characterization and wavefront measurements at ultrahigh extreme ultraviolet and X-ray intensities, only few, if any progress on accurately measuring other key parameters such as the state of polarization has emerged. Here we show that by combining ultra-short extreme ultraviolet free electron laser pulses from FERMI with near-infrared laser pulses, we can accurately measure the polarization state of a free electron laser beam in an elegant, non-invasive and straightforward manner using circular dichroism.

Nature Communications 5, Article number: 364 (2014)

N. Stojanovic, M. Drescher

At present we are witnessing a rapid development of sources for terahertz (THz) pulses with very strong electromagnetic fields. These pulses are reaching a stage where they can be used to not only probe, but also uniquely control a variety of processes that range from fundamental dynamics in individual atoms and molecules, through phase transitions in solids to a wealth of interactions in biological materials. In this review, we are presenting an overview of two major directions in the generation of such radiation. Large-scale accelerator-based sources offer unprecedented pulse energies coupled with a wide tuning range and extreme repetition rates. Laser-based sources, on the other hand, are laboratory-scale instruments and thus are very attractive in their availability to the wide scientific community. The capabilities of different variants of these THz sources are evaluated and compared with each other. In addition, powerful techniques for the temporal characterization of THz pulses are discussed.

J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 46, 192001 (2013)

B. Schuette, S. Bauch, U. Fruehling, M. Wieland, M. Gensch, E. Ploenjes, T. Gaumnitz, A. Azima, M. Bonitz, M. Drescher

Auger decay carries valuable information about the electronic structure and dynamics of atoms, molecules, and solids. Here we furnish evidence that under certain conditions Auger electrons are subject to an energetic chirp. The effect is disclosed in time-resolved streaking experiments on the Xe NOO and Kr MNN Auger decay using extreme-ultraviolet pulses from the free-electron laser in Hamburg as well as from a high-order harmonic laser source. The origin of this effect is found to be an exchange of energy between the Auger electron and an earlier emitted correlated photoelectron. The observed time-dependent spectral modulations are understood within an analytical model and confirmed by extensive computer simulations.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 253003 (2012)

D. Schwickert, M. Ruberti, P. Kolorenč, A. Przystawik, S. Skruszewicz, M. Sumfleth, M. Braune, L. Bocklage, L. Carretero, M.K. Czwalinna, D. Diaman, S. Düsterer, M. Kuhlmann, S. Palutke, R. Röhlsberger, J. Rönsch-Schulenburg, S. Toleikis, S. Usenko, J. Viefhaus, A. Vorobiov, M. Martins, D. Kip, V. Averbukh, J.P. Marangos, and T. Laarmann

In the present contribution, we use x-rays to monitor charge-induced chemical dynamics in the photoionized amino acid glycine with femtosecond time resolution. The outgoing photoelectron leaves behind the cation in a coherent superposition of quantum mechanical eigenstates. Delayed x-ray pulses track the induced coherence through resonant x-ray absorption that induces Auger decay. Temporal modulation of the Auger electron signal correlated with specific ions is observed, which is governed by the initial electronic coherence and subsequent vibronic coupling to nuclear degrees of freedom. In the time-resolved x-ray absorption measurement, we monitor the time-frequency spectra of the resulting many-body quantum wave packets for a period of 175 fs along different reaction coordinates. Our experiment proves that by measuring specific fragments associated with the glycine dication as a function of the pump-probe delay, one can selectively probe electronic coherences at early times associated with a few distinguishable components of the broad electronic wave packet created initially by the pump pulse in the cation. The corresponding coherent superpositions formed by subsets of electronic eigenstates and evolving along parallel dynamical pathways show different phases and time periods in the range of... .

Struct. Dyn. 9, 064301 (2022)

D. Schwickert, M. Ruberti, P. Kolorenč, S. Usenko, A. Przystawik, K. Baev, I. Baev, M. Braune, L. Bocklage, M.K. Czwalinna, S. Deinert, S. Düsterer, A. Hans, G. Hartmann, C. Haunhorst, M. Kuhlmann, S. Palutke, R. Röhlsberger, J. Rönsch-Schulenburg, P. Schmidt, S. Toleikis, J. Viefhaus, M. Martins, A. Knie, D. Kip, V. Averbukh, J.P. Marangos, and T. Laarmann

Here, we use x-rays to create and probe quantum coherence in the photoionized amino acid glycine. The outgoing photoelectron leaves behind the cation in a coherent superposition of quantum mechanical eigenstates. Delayed x-ray pulses track the induced coherence through resonant x-ray absorption that induces Auger decay and by photoelectron emission from sequential double photoionization. Sinusoidal temporal modulation of the detected signal at early times (0 to 25 fs) is observed in both measurements. Advanced ab initio many-electron simulations allow us to explain the first 25 fs of the detected coherent quantum evolution in terms of the electronic coherence. In the kinematically complete x-ray absorption measurement, we monitor its dynamics for a period of 175 fs and observe an evolving modulation that may implicate the coupling of electronic to vibronic coherence at longer time scales. Our experiment provides a direct support for the existence of long-lived electronic coherence in photoionized biomolecules.

Science Advances 8, eabn6848 (2022)

S. Hartwell, A. Azima, C. Haunhorst, M. Kazemi, M. Namboodiri, A. Przystawik, D. Schwickert, S. Skruszewicz, D. Kip, M. Drescher & T. Laarmann

Controlling the temporal and spectral properties of ultrashort laser pulses in the visible and near-infrared spectral range by means of a femtosecond pulse-shaping device is a powerful tool with many applications in ultrafast spectroscopy. A major and successful concept is known as the 4f design, which has a symmetric zero-dispersion-compressor geometry. Most 4f pulse shapers rely on using transmissive optics in their beam path limiting the operational wavelength ranges. In the present contribution, we use an all-reflective shaping setup to generate a phase-locked 266 nm double pulse to benchmark its performance in the limit of short wavelengths. The setup comprises the complete spectral amplitude and phase diagnostics for quantitative analysis of the pulse properties before and after the shaper using the technique of frequency-resolved optical gating. The measured time–frequency spectra are in good agreement with optical simulations. The geometry and hardware of the device including the optical components are designed, such that all harmonics of the deep UV pulses travel the same path, giving the instrument the ability to work with soft X-ray pulses, under vacuum conditions, down to the few-nanometer wavelength scale.

Appl. Phys. B 128, 2 (2022)

S. Skruszewicz, A. Przystawik, D. Schwickert, M. Sumfleth, M. Namboodiri, V. Hilbert, R. Klas, P. Gierschke, V. Schuster, A. Vorobiov, C. Haunhorst, D. Kip, J. Limpert, J. Rothhardt, and T. Laarmann

Short-pulse metrology and dynamic studies in the extreme ultraviolet (XUV) spectral range greatly benefit from interferometric measurements. In this contribution a Michelson-type all-reflective split-and-delay autocorrelator operating in a quasi amplitude splitting mode is presented. The autocorrelator works under a grazing incidence angle in a broad spectral range (10 nm – 1 μm) providing collinear propagation of both pulse replicas and thus a constant phase difference across the beam profile. The compact instrument allows for XUV pulse autocorrelation measurements in the time domain with a single-digit attosecond precision and a useful scan length of about 1 ps enabling a decent resolution of E/ΔE = 2000 at 26.6 eV. Its performance for selected spectroscopic applications requiring moderate resolution at short wavelengths is demonstrated by characterizing a sharp electronic transition at 26.6 eV in Ar gas. The absorption of the 11^th harmonic of a frequency-doubled Yb-fiber laser leads to the well-known 3s3p⁶4p¹P¹ Fano resonance of Ar atoms. We benchmark our time-domain interferometry results with a high-resolution XUV grating spectrometer and find an excellent agreement. The common-path interferometer opens up new opportunities for short-wavelength femtosecond and attosecond pulse metrology and dynamic studies on extreme time scales in various research fields.

Opt. Express 29, 40333-40344 (2021)

S. Usenko et al.

Wave packet interferometry provides benchmark information on light-induced electronic quantum states by monitoring their relative amplitudes and phases during coherent excitation, propagation, and decay. The relative phase control of soft x-ray pulse replicas on the single-digit attosecond timescale achieved in our experiments makes this method a powerful tool to probe ultrafast quantum phenomena such as the excitation of Auger shake-up states with sub-cycle precision. In this contribution we present first results obtained for different Auger decay channels upon generating L-shell vacancies in argon atoms using Michelson-type all-reflective interferometric autocorrelation at a central free-electron laser photon energy of 274.7 eV.

J. Phys. B 53, 244008 (2020)

L. L. Lazzarino, M. M. Kazemi, C. Haunhorst, C. Becker, S. Hartwell, M. A. Jakob, A. Przystawik, S. Usenko, D. Kip, I. Hartl, and T. Laarmann

We present the design of an extreme ultraviolet (XUV) pulse shaper relying on reflective optics. The instrument will allow tailoring of the time-frequency spectrum of femtosecond pulses generated by seeded free-electron lasers (FEL) and high-harmonic generation (HHG) sources down to a central wavelength of ~15 nm. The device is based on the geometry of a 4f grating compressor that is a standard concept in ultrafast laser science and technology. We apply it to shorter wavelengths using grazing-incidence optics operated under ultra-high vacuum conditions. The design blaze angle and the line density of the gratings allow the manipulation of all different harmonics typical for seeded FEL and HHG photon sources without the need of realignment of the instrument and even simultaneously in multi-color experiments. A proof-of-principle pulse shaping experiment using 266 nm laser light has been performed, demonstrating relative phase-control of femtosecond UV pulses.

Opt. Express 27, 13479 (2019)

Oliver Schepp, Arne Baumann, Marek Wieland, Armin Azima, Markus Drescher

The ultrafast non-adiabatic dynamics of the electronically excited ethylene molecule C2H4 and its deuterated isotopologue C2D4 are studied with time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy after excitation via irradiation with light in the vacuum ultraviolet spectral range. Sub-20-fs pulses, generated as the fifth harmonic of a Ti:Sa laser system, are split and delayed in an all-reflective Michelson-type interferometer, enabling a single-color pump-probe experiment. In addition to the ultrafast non-adiabatic relaxation process of C2H4, we find more complex dynamics exhibited by the delay-dependent photoelectron yield of C2D4, identified as a signature of the delayed dissociative ionization of the parent ion.

Chemical Physics Letters: X, Volume 3, 1000024 (2019);
DOI: 10.1016/j.cpletx.2019.100024

Arne Baumann, Dimitrios Rompotis, Oliver Schepp, Marek Wieland, and Markus Drescher

Rydberg excitations in the vacuum ultraviolet spectral range may open up molecular photoreaction pathways not accessible from lower-lying valence states. Here, single-shot UV/VUV pump–probe spectroscopy was used to study the photodissociation dynamics of iodomethane after 268 nm excitation in the A-band and excitation of the 6p (2E3/2) Rydberg state at 161 nm. By combining weak-field VUV single-photon ionization with sub-10 fs temporal resolution and the superior statistical accuracy of the single-shot technique, sub-30 fs wave packet dynamics upon excitation in the A-band by a UV pump pulse were disclosed. Population transfer from the Rydberg state to the 2 1A1 valence state leading to 100 fs dissociation dynamics was observed by utilizing the same methodology in a VUV-pump/UV-probe scheme.

J. Phys. Chem. A, 2018, 122 (21), pp 4779–4784
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.8b01248

A. Baumann, S. Bazzi, D. Rompotis, O. Schepp, A. Azima, M. Wieland, D. Popova-Gorelova, O. Vendrell, R. Santra, M. Drescher

We present a joint experimental and theoretical study of the VUV-induced dynamics of H2O and its deuterated isotopologues in the first excited state (˜A1B1) utilizing a VUV-pump VUV-probe scheme combined with ab initio classical trajectory calculations. 16-fs VUV pulses centered at 161 nm created by fifth-order harmonic generation are employed for single-shot pump-probe measurements. Combined with a precise determination of the VUV pulses' temporal profile, they provide the necessary temporal resolution to elucidate sub-10-fs dissociation dynamics in the 1+1 photon ionization time window. Ionization with a single VUV photon complements established strong-field ionization schemes by disclosing the molecular dynamics under perturbative conditions. Kinetic isotope effects derived from the pump-probe experiment are found to be in agreement with our by ab initio classical trajectory calculations, taking into account photoionization cross sections for the ground and first excited state of the water cation.

Phys. Rev. A 96, 013428 (2017)

D. Rompotis, A. Baumann, O. Schepp, T. Maltezopoulos, M. Wieland, M. Drescher

Time-resolved spectroscopy in the vacuum/extreme ultraviolet (VUV/XUV) spectral range promises to disclose ultrafast dynamics in all states of matter. Completing a measurement within a single shot eliminates the influence of experimental parameter fluctuations and enhances its statistical significance. We demonstrate a single-shot temporal metrology scheme operating in the vacuum/extreme-ultraviolet spectral range, combining few-femtosecond resolution in a wide temporal window with high detection efficiency. An anticollinear geometry encodes temporal delay information on the beam propagation coordinate. The spatial distribution of ions created in the common focus is captured with a mass/charge-state-selective ion imaging spectrometer, resulting in a single-shot pump–probe measurement. We demonstrate a proof-of-principle single-shot VUV-pump/VUV-probe experiment by investigating ultrafast dissociation dynamics of O2 excited at 162 nm. The experimental determination of the finite instrument response in the same apparatus enables robust deconvolution of the investigated dynamics well beyond the instrument’s intrinsic temporal resolution.

Optica Vol. 4, Issue 8, pp. 871-878 (2017)

Usenko, A. Przystawik, M.A. Jakob, L.L. Lazzarino, G. Brenner, S. Toleikis, Ch. Haunhorst, D. Kip, T. Laarmann

Light-phase-sensitive techniques, such as coherent multidimensional spectroscopy, are well-established in a broad spectral range, already spanning from radio-frequencies in nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to visible and ultraviolet wavelengths in nonlinear optics with table-top lasers. In these cases, the ability to tailor the phases of electromagnetic waves with high precision is essential. Here we achieve phase control of extreme-ultraviolet pulses from a free-electron laser (FEL) on the attosecond timescale in a Michelson-type all-reflective interferometric autocorrelator. By varying the relative phase of the generated pulse replicas with sub-cycle precision we observe the field interference, that is, the light-wave oscillation with a period of 129 as. The successful transfer of a powerful optical method towards short-wavelength FEL science and technology paves the way towards utilization of advanced nonlinear methodologies even at partially coherent soft X-ray FEL sources that rely on self-amplified spontaneous emission.

Nat. Commun. 8, 15626 (2017)

S. Usenko, A. Przystawik, L.L. Lazzarino, M.A. Jakob, F. Jacobs, C. Becker, C. Haunhorst, D. Kip, and T. Laarmann

In this work we present a reflective split-and-delay unit (SDU) developed for interferometric time-resolved experiments utilizing an (extreme ultraviolet) XUV pump–XUV probe scheme with focused free-electron laser beams. The developed SDU overcomes limitations for phase-resolved measurements inherent to conventional two-element split mirrors by a special design using two reflective lamellar gratings. The gratings produce a high-contrast interference signal controlled by the grating displacement in every diffraction order. The orders are separated in the focal plane of the focusing optics, which enables one to avoid phase averaging by spatially selective detection of a single interference state of the two light fields. Interferometry requires a precise relative phase control of the light fields, which presents a challenge at short wavelengths. In our setup the phase delay is determined by an in-vacuum white light interferometer (WLI) that monitors the surface profile of the SDU in real time and thus measures the delay for each laser shot. The precision of the WLI is 1 nm as determined by optical laser interferometry. In the presented experimental geometry it corresponds to a time delay accuracy of 3 as, which enables phase-resolved XUV pump–XUV probe experiments at free-electron laser (FEL) repetition rates up to 60 Hz.

Appl. Sci. 7, 544 (2017)

S. Usenko, M. Schüler, A. Azima, M. Jakob, L.L. Lazzarino, Y. Pavlyukh, A. Przystawik, M. Drescher, T. Laarmann, J. Berakdar

Fullerene complexes may play a key role in the design of future molecular electronics and nanostructured devices with potential applications in light harvesting using organic solar cells. Charge and energy flow in these systems is mediated by many-body effects. We studied the structure and dynamics of laser-induced multi-electron excitations in isolated C60 by two-photon photoionization as a function of excitation wavelength using a tunable fs UV laser and developed a corresponding theoretical framework on the basis of ab initio calculations. The measured resonance line width gives direct information on the excited state lifetime. From the spectral deconvolution we derive a lower limit for purely electronic relaxation on the order of Tel=10+5-3 fs. Energy dissipation towards nuclear degrees of freedom is studied with time-resolved techniques. The evaluation of the nonlinear autocorrelation trace gives a characteristic time constant of Tvib=400+-100 fs for the exponential decay. In line with the experiment, the observed transient dynamics is explained theoretically by nonadiabatic (vibronic) couplings involving the correlated electronic, the nuclear degrees of freedom (accounting for the Herzberg–Teller coupling), and their interplay.

New J. Phys. 18, 113055 (2016)

O. Schepp, A. Baumann, D. Rompotis, T. Gebert, A. Azima, M. Wieland, M. Drescher

Phys. Rev. A 94, 033411 – Published 13 September 2016

D. Rompotis, T. Gebert, M. Wieland, F. Karimi, M. Drescher

We demonstrate the generation of microjoule level, sub-20-fs, Ti:Sa fifth-harmonic pulses utilizing a loose-focusing geometry in a long Ar gas cell. The VUV pulses centered at 161.8 nm reach pulse energies of 1.1 μJ per pulse, while the corresponding pulse duration is measured with a second-order, fringe-resolved autocorrelation scheme to be 18±1  fs. Nonresonant, two-photon ionization of Kr and three-photon ionization of Ne verify the fifth-harmonic pulse high-intensity content and indicate the feasibility of multi-photon VUV pump-VUV probe studies of ultrafast atomic and molecular dynamics.

Optics Letters Vol. 40, 1675-1678

A. Przystawik, L. Schroedter, M. Müller, M. Adolph, C. Bostedt, L. Flückiger, T. Gorkhover, A. Kickermann, M. Krikunova, Nösel, T. Oelze, Y. Ovcharenko, D. Rupp, L. M. Sauppe, S. Schorb, S. Usenko, T. Möller, T. Laarmann

Intense pulses from a short wavelength free-electron laser turn xenon nanoparticles into a high energy density nanoplasma within femtoseconds. Recently, the generation of multiply charged xenon ions during the initial phase of plasma evolution has been studied by energy-resolved XUV fluorescence detection as a function of cluster size and cluster composition [1]. In the present contribution we give a detailed analysis of the corresponding radiative transitions after resonant excitation of the 4d electron shell at intensities of 2 × 1012 − 2.45 × 1015 W cm−2. The evaluation of charge-state specific fluorescence yields as a function of FEL power density demonstrates that plasma effects such as ionization potential lowering, electron impact excitation, ionization, and energy redistribution govern the laser-induced non-equilibrium dynamics in xenon clusters.

Journal of Physics B 48, 184002

M. Müller, L. Schroedter, T. Oelze, L. Nösel, A. Przystawik, A. Kickermann, M. Adolph, T. Gorkhover, L. Flückiger, M. Krikunova, M. Sauppe, Y. Ovcharenko, S. Schorb, C. Bostedt, D. Rupp, T. Laarmann, T. Möller

We report on the ionization and nanoplasma dynamics of small xenon clusters irradiated by intense, short pulses of a short-wavelength free-electron laser. Fluorescence spectroscopy indicates that inelastic electron collisions play a prominent role in the formation of the highest charge states. From the spectral distribution an electron temperature of 27 eV is deduced which corresponds to the average excess energy of the Auger- and photoelectrons ionized from individual atoms but trapped in the cluster core. This suggests that fluorescence spectra reflect a very early stage within the nanoplasma dynamics and shows how a part of the kinetic energy of the plasma electrons trapped in the cluster potential is transferred to the ions.

Journal of Physics B 48, 174002

L. Schroedter, M. Müller, A. Kickermann, A. Przystawik, S. Toleikis, M. Adolph, L. Flückiger, T. Gorkhover, L. Nösel, M. Krikunova, T. Oelze, Y. Ovcharenko, D. Rupp, M. Sauppe, D. Wolter, S. Schorb, C. Bostedt, T. Möller, T. Laarmann

Highly charged ions are formed in the center of composite clusters by strong free-electron laser pulses and they emit fluorescence on a femtosecond time scale before competing recombination leads to neutralization of the nanoplasma core. In contrast to mass spectrometry that detects remnants of the interaction, fluorescence in the extreme ultraviolet spectral range provides fingerprints of transient states of high energy density matter. Spectra from clusters consisting of a xenon core and a surrounding argon shell show that a small fraction of the fluorescence signal comes from multiply charged xenon ions in the cluster core. Initially, these ions are as highly charged as the ions in the outer shells of pure xenon clusters with charge states up to at least.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 112, 183401 (2014)

T. Maltezopoulos, M. Mittenzwey, A. Azima, J. Bödewadt, H. Dachraoui, M. Rehders, C. Lechner, M. Schulz, M. Wieland, T. Laarmann, J. Roßbach, M. Drescher

Direct seeding with a high-harmonic generation (HHG) source can improve the spectral, temporal, and coherence properties of a free-electron laser (FEL) and shall reduce intensity and arrival-time fluctuations. In the seeding experiment sFLASH at the extreme ultraviolet FEL in Hamburg FLASH, which operates in the self-amplified spontaneous emission mode (SASE), the 21st harmonic of an 800 nm laser is refocused into a dedicated seeding undulator. For seeding, the external light field has to overcome the noise level of SASE; therefore, an efficient coupling between seed pulse and electron bunch is mandatory. Thus, an HHG beam with a proper divergence, width, beam quality, Rayleigh length, pointing stability, single-shot pulse energy, and stability in the 21st harmonic is needed. Here, we present the setup of the HHG source that seeds sFLASH at 38.1 nm, the optimization procedures, and the necessary diagnostics.

Applied Physics B, Volume 115, Issue 1, pp 45-54 (2014)

A. Przystawik, A. Kickermann, A. Al-Shemmary, S. Düsterer, A. M. Ellis, K. von Haeften, M. Harmand, S. Ramakrishna, H. Redlin, L. Schroedter, M. Schulz, T. Seideman, N. Stojanovic, J. Szekely, F. Tavella, S. Toleikis, T. Laarmann

We introduce a time-domain approach to explore rotational dynamics caused by intramolecular coupling or the interaction with dissipative media. It pushes the time resolution toward the ultimate limit determined by the rotational period. Femtosecond pulses create a coherent superposition of two rotational states of carbon monoxide. The wave-packet motion is observed by subsequent Coulomb explosion, which results in a time-dependent asymmetry of spatial fragmentation patterns. The asymmetry oscillation prevails for at least 1 ns, covering more than 300 periods with no decoherence. Long time scans will allow weak perturbations of the order of ΔE/E=10−4 to be discerned. Our conclusions are confirmed by a fully quantum-mechanical model.

Phys. Rev. A 85, 052503 (2012)

T. Gebert, D. Rompotis, M. Wieland, F. Karimi, A. Azima, M. Drescher

We demonstrate second-order interferometric autocorrelation of a pulse in the vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV) spectral range using an optical arrangement equivalent to a Michelson interferometer. In an all-reflective design, wavefront splitting is realized with two moveable interdigitated reflective gratings forming a diffraction pattern with well separated orders and an intensity distribution depending on the precisely adjustable path-length difference. An imaging time-of-flight spectrometer is able to spatially select ions created by nonlinear two-photon absorption in the focus of the zeroth diffraction order. This arrangement is used to demonstrate interferometric autocorrelation in krypton with femtosecond VUV pulses at 160 nm wavelength. In addition to the pulse duration, which is already accessible with non-collinear intensity autocorrelation, the full interferometric contrast of the presented approach enables us to extract also information on temporal phases.

Int. J. Opt. 2011, 417075 (2011)

G. Kastirke, F. Ota, D. V. Rezvan, M. S. Schöffler, M. Weller, J. Rist, R. Boll, N.Anders, T. M. Baumann, S. Eckart, B. Erk, A. De Fanis, K. Fehre, A. Gatton, S. Grundmann, P. Grychtol, A. Hartung, M. Hofmann, M. Ilchen, C. Janke, M. Kircher, M. Kunitski, X. Li, T. Mazza, N. Melzer, J. Montano, V. Music, G. Nalin, Y. Ovcharenko, A. Pier, N. Rennhack, D. E. Rivas, R. Dörner, D. Rolles, A. Rudenko, P. Schmidt, J. Siebert, N. Strenger, D. Trabert, I. Vela-Perez, R. Wagner, T. Weber, J. B. Williams, P. Ziolkowski, L. Ph. H. Schmidt, A. Czasch, Y. Tamura, N. Hara, K. Yamazaki, K. Hatada, F. Trinter, M. Meyer, K. Ueda, Ph. V. Demekhin, and T. Jahnke

During the last decade, X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) have enabled the study of light–matter interaction under extreme conditions. Atoms which are subject to XFEL radiation are charged by a complex interplay of (several subsequent) photoionization events and electronic decay processes within a few femtoseconds. The interaction with molecules is even more intriguing, since intricate nuclear dynamics occur as the molecules start to dissociate during the charge-up process. Here, we demonstrate that by analyzing photoelectron angular emission distributions and kinetic energy release of charge states of ionic molecular fragments, we can obtain a detailed understanding of the charge-up and fragmentation dynamics. Our novel approach allows for gathering such information without the need of complex ab initio modeling. As an example, we provide a detailed view on the processes happening on a femtosecond time scale in oxygen molecules exposed to intense XFEL pulses.

Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 24, 27121 (2022)

Alexandra J. Feinberg et al.

Finding the lowest energy configuration of N unit charges on a sphere, known as Thomson's problem, is a long-standing query which has only been studied via numerical simulations. We present its physical realization using multiply charged He nanodroplets. The charge positions are determined by x-ray coherent diffractive imaging with Xe as a contrast agent. In neutral droplets, filaments resulting from Xe atoms condensing on quantum vortices are observed. Unique to charged droplets, however, Xe clusters that condense on charges are distributed on the surface in lattice-like structures, introducing He droplets as experimental model systems for the study of Thomson's problem.

Phys. Rev. Research 4, L022063 (2022)

X. Li, A. Rudenko, T. Mazza, A. Rörig, N. Anders, Th. M. Baumann, S. Eckart, B. Erk, A. De Fanis, K. Fehre, R. Dörner, L. Foucar, S. Grundmann, P. Grychtol, A. Hartung, M. Hofmann, M. Ilchen, Ch. Janke, G. Kastirke, M. Kircher, K. Kubicek, M. Kunitski, S. Meister, N. Melzer, J. Montano, V. Music, G. Nalin, Y. Ovcharenko, Ch. Passow, A. Pier, N. Rennhack, J. Rist, D. E. Rivas, I. Schlichting, L. Ph. H. Schmidt, Ph. Schmidt, M. S. Schöffler, J. Siebert, N. Strenger, D. Trabert, F. Trinter, I. Vela-Perez, R. Wagner, P. Walter, M. Weller, P. Ziolkowski, A. Czasch, M. Meyer, T. Jahnke, D. Rolles, and R. Boll

Extremely high charge states of atoms and molecules can be created when they are irradiated by intense x-ray pulses. At certain x-ray photon energies, electron ejection from atoms can be drastically enhanced by transient resonances created during the sequential ionization process. Here we report on the observation of such resonance effects in a molecule, CH₃I, and show the photon-energy-dependent shift of resonance-induced structures in ion charge state distributions. By comparing the ion charge state distribution of CH₃I with that from ionization of atomic xenon, molecule-specific features are observed, which can be attributed to ultrafast intramolecular charge rearrangement. In addition, we experimentally demonstrate that the charge-rearrangement-enhanced x-ray ionization of molecules, previously found with hard x rays, also plays a role in the soft x-ray regime.

Phys. Rev. A 105, 053102 (2022)

R. Boll, J. M. Schäfer, B. Richard, K. Fehre, G. Kastirke, Z. Jurek, M. S. Schöffler, M. M. Abdullah, N. Anders, T. M. Baumann, S. Eckart, B. Erk, A. De Fanis, R. Dörner, S. Grundmann, P. Grychto, A. Hartung, M. Hofmann, M. Ilchen, L. Inhester, C. Janke, R. Jin, M. Kircher, K. Kubicek, M. Kunitski, X. Li, T. Mazza, S. Meister, N. Melzer, J. Montano, V. Music, G. Nalin, Y. Ovcharenko, C. Passow, A. Pier, N. Rennhack, J. Rist, D. E. Rivas, D. Rolles, I. Schlichting, L. Ph. H. Schmidt, P. Schmidt, J. Siebert, N. Strenger, D. Trabert, F. Trinter, I. Vela-Perez, R. Wagner, P. Walter, M. Weller, P. Ziolkowski, S.-K. Son, A. Rudenko, M. Meyer, R. Santra, and T. Jahnke

Following structural dynamics in real time is a fundamental goal towards a better understanding of chemical reactions. Recording snapshots of individual molecules with ultrashort exposure times is a key ingredient towards this goal, as atoms move on femtosecond (10⁻¹⁵ s) timescales. For condensed-phase samples, ultrafast, atomically resolved structure determination has been demonstrated using X-ray and electron diffraction. Pioneering experiments have also started addressing gaseous samples. However, they face the problem of low target densities, low scattering cross sections and random spatial orientation of the molecules. Therefore, obtaining images of entire, isolated molecules capturing all constituents, including hydrogen atoms, remains challenging. Here we demonstrate that intense femtosecond pulses from an X-ray free-electron laser trigger rapid and complete Coulomb explosions of 2-iodopyridine and 2-iodopyrazine molecules. We obtain intriguingly clear momentum images depicting ten or eleven atoms, including all the hydrogens, and thus overcome a so-far impregnable barrier for complete Coulomb explosion imaging—its limitation on molecules consisting of three to five atoms. In combination with state-of-the-art multi-coincidence techniques and elaborate theoretical modelling, this allows tracing ultrafast hydrogen emission and obtaining information on the result of intramolecular electron rearrangement. Our work represents an important step towards imaging femtosecond chemistry via Coulomb explosion.

Nature Physics 18, 423 (2022)

A. C. LaForge, S.-K. Son, D. Mishra, M. Ilchen, S. Duncanson, E. Eronen, E. Kukk, S. Wirok-Stoletow,, D. Kolbasova, P. Walter, R. Boll, A. De Fanis, M. Meyer, Y. Ovcharenko, D. E. Rivas, P. Schmidt, S. Usenko, R. Santra, and N. Berrah

Here, we report on the nonlinear ionization of argon atoms in the short wavelength regime using ultraintense x rays from the European XFEL. After sequential multiphoton ionization, high charge states are obtained. For photon energies that are insufficient to directly ionize a 1s electron, a different mechanism is required to obtain ionization to Ar¹⁷⁺. We propose this occurs through a two-color process where the second harmonic of the FEL pulse resonantly excites the system via a 1s→2p transition followed by ionization by the fundamental FEL pulse, which is a type of x-ray resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI). This resonant phenomenon occurs not only for Ar¹⁶⁺, but also through lower charge states, where multiple ionization competes with decay lifetimes, making x-ray REMPI distinctive from conventional REMPI. With the aid of state-of-the-art theoretical calculations, we explain the effects of x-ray REMPI on the relevant ion yields and spectral profile.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 213202 (2021)

L. Varvarezos, J.C. Costello, C. Long, A.J. Achner, R. Wagner, M. Meyer and P. Grychtol

The effect of laser wavelength on the dissociation mechanisms in methane is examined over a broad range of intensities for both 800 nm and 400 nm laser fields. It is found that, at lower laser intensities, the dissociation pathways identified with the aid of theoretical calculations for the methane cation can account for most of the experimental findings, including the differences observed for irradiation by 800 nm and the 400 nm fields. As the laser intensity increases, the significance of the Coulomb explosion mechanism, along with the contribution of the rescattering process and the concomitant dissociation pathways, is highlighted.

Chem. Phys. Lett. 775, 138687 (2021)

T. Mazza, M. Ilchen, M. D. Kiselev, E. V. Gryzlova, T. M. Baumann, R. Boll, A. De Fanis, P. Grychtol, J. Montaño, V. Music, Y. Ovcharenko, N. Rennhack, D. E. Rivas, Ph. Schmidt, R. Wagner, P. Ziolkowski, N. Berrah, B. Erk, P. Johnsson, C. Küstner-Wetekam, L. Marder, M. Martins, C. Ott, S. Pathak, T. Pfeifer, D. Rolles, O. Zatsarinny, A. N. Grum-Grzhimailo, and M. Meyer

The nature of transient electronic states created by photoabsorption critically determines the dynamics of the subsequently evolving system. Here, we investigate K-shell photoionized atomic neon by absorbing a second photon within the Auger-decay lifetime of 2.4 fs using the European XFEL, a unique high-repetition-rate, wavelength-tunable x-ray free-electron laser. By high-resolution electron spectroscopy, we map out the transient Rydberg resonances unraveling the details of the subsequent decay of the hollow atom. So far, ultra-short-lived electronic transients, which are often inaccessible by experiments, were mainly inferred from theory but are now addressed by nonlinear x-ray absorption. The successful characterization of these resonances with femtosecond lifetimes provides the basis for a novel class of site-specific, nonlinear, and time-resolved studies with strong impact for a wide range of topics in physics and chemistry.

Phys. Rev. X 10, 041056 (2020)

S. Usenko et al.

Wave packet interferometry provides benchmark information on light-induced electronic quantum states by monitoring their relative amplitudes and phases during coherent excitation, propagation, and decay. The relative phase control of soft x-ray pulse replicas on the single-digit attosecond timescale achieved in our experiments makes this method a powerful tool to probe ultrafast quantum phenomena such as the excitation of Auger shake-up states with sub-cycle precision. In this contribution we present first results obtained for different Auger decay channels upon generating L-shell vacancies in argon atoms using Michelson-type all-reflective interferometric autocorrelation at a central free-electron laser photon energy of 274.7 eV.

J. Phys. B 53, 244008 (2020)

Sadia Bari, Ludger Inhester, Kaja Schubert, Karolin Mertens, Jan O. Schunck, Simon Dörner, Sascha Deinert, Schwob Lucas, Stefan Schippers, Alfred Müller, Stephan Klumpp and Michael Martins

On yields following X-ray absorption of the cationic series NH_y⁺(y= 0–3) were measured to identify the characteristic absorption resonances in the energy range of the atomic nitrogen K-edge. Significant changes in the position of the absorption resonances were observed depending on the number of hydrogen atoms bound to the central nitrogen atom. Configuration interaction (CI) calculations were performed to obtain line assignments in the frame of molecular group theory. To validate the calculations, our assignment for the atomic cation N⁺, measured as a reference, was compared with published theoretical and experimental data.

PCCP accepted (2019)

A. Müller, M. Martins, A. L. D. Kilcoyne, R. A. Phaneuf, J. Hellhund, A. _Borovik, Jr., K. Holste, S. Bari, T. Buhr, S. Klumpp, A. Perry-Sassmannshausen, S. Reinwardt, S. Ricz, K. Schubert, and S. Schippers

Photoprocesses of the endohedral fullerene ions S_c3N@C₊₈₀ and S_c3N@C₈₀− in the gas phase have been investigated in the photon energy ranges 30–50 eV and 280–420 eV. Single and double ionization as well as single ionization accompanied by the release of a C₂ dimer were observed as a function of the photon energy for the positive parent ion and double detachment was measured for the negative parent ion. The emphasis of the experiments was on the specific effects of the encapsulated trimetallic nitride cluster S_c3N on the observed reactions. Clear evidence of photoexcitation near the Sc L edge is obtained with the dominating contributions visible in the one- and two-electron-removal channels. K-vacancy production in the encapsulated central nitrogen atom is seen in the single ionization of S_c3N@C₊₈₀ but is much less pronounced in the photoionization-with-fragmentation channel. Comparison of the cross sections near the carbon K edge with the corresponding channels measured previously in the photoionization of L_u3N@C₊₈₀ reveal strong similarities. Previously predicted sharp resonance features in the ionization of S_c3N@C+80 ions below the Sc M edge are not confirmed. The experiments are accompanied by quantum-chemistry calculations in the Hartree-Fock approximation and by model calculations employing density functional theory (DFT).

Phys. Rev. A 99, 063401 (2019)

Stefan Schippers, Ticia Buhr, Alexander Borovik Jr., Kristof Holste, Alexander Perry-Sassmannshausen, Karolin Mertens, Simon Reinwardt, Michael Martins, Stephan Klumpp, Kaja Schubert, Sadia Bari, Randolf Beerwerth, Stephan Fritzsche, Sandor Ricz, Jonas Hellhund, and Alfred Müller

The Photon‐Ion Spectrometer at PETRA III—in short, PIPE—is a permanently installed user facility at the "Variable Polarization XUV Beamline" P04 of the synchrotron light source PETRA III operated by DESY in Hamburg, Germany. The careful design of the PIPE ion‐optics in combination with the record‐high photon flux at P04 has lead to a breakthrough in experimental studies of photon interactions with ionized small quantum systems. This short review provides an overview over the published scientific results from photon‐ion merged‐beams experiments at PIPE that were obtained since the start of P04 operations in 2013. The topics covered comprise photoionization of ions of astrophysical relevance, quantitative studies of multi‐electron processes upon inner‐shell photoexcitation and photoionization of negative and positive atomic ions, precision spectroscopy of photoionization resonances, photoionization and photofragmentation of molecular ions, and of endohedral fullerene ions.

X-Ray Spectrometry, 1-10 (2019). 10.1002/xrs.3035

M. Hollstein, K. Mertens, S. Klumpp, N. Gerken, S. Palutke, I. Baev, G. Brenner, S. Dziarzhytski, M. Meyer, W. Wurth, D. Pfannkuche1, M. Martins

We present studies on intra-molecular charge redistribution in iodine containing molecules upon iodine-4d photoionization. For this, we employed an XUV-pump-XUV-probe scheme based on time-delayed femtosecond pulses delivered by the free-electron laser at DESY in Hamburg (FLASH). The experimental results show delay dependent and molecule-specific iodine charge state distributions that arise upon multiple iodine-4d photoionization. Using the example of CH₃I and CH₂I₂, we compare the delay-dependent yields of I³⁺. We model the involved processes using advanced ab initio electronic structure calculations which include electron correlations combined with a classical model of the nuclear motion. The qualitative agreement of our model with the experimental results allows us to relate the observed, strongly molecule-specific efficiencies of the intra-molecular charge rearrangement not only to molecule-specific fragmentation timescales but also to molecule-specific electronic structure and molecular environment.

New J.Phys 21, 033017 (2019)

Stephan Klumpp, Alexander A. Guda, Kaja Schubert, Karolin Mertens, Jonas Hellhund, Alfred Müller, Stefan Schippers, Sadia Bari, and Michael Martins

Yields of atomic iodine I^q+ (q≥2) fragments resulting from photoexcitation and photoionization of the target ions IH+ and I+ have been measured in the photon-energy range 610–680 eV, which comprises the thresholds for iodine 3d ionization. The measured ion-yield spectra show two strong and broad resonance features due to the excitation of the 3d_3/2,5/2 electrons into ɛf states rather similar for both parent ions. In the 3d pre-edge range, excitations into (npπ)-like orbitals and into an additional σ^∗ orbital are found for IH+, which have been identified by comparison of the atomic I+ and molecular IH+ data and with the help of (time-dependent) density functional theory (DFT) and atomic Hartree-Fock calculations. The (5p π) orbital is almost atomlike, whereas all other resonances of the IH+ primary ion show a more pronounced molecular character, which is deduced from the chemical shifts of the resonances and the theoretical analysis.

Phys.Rev.A 97, 033401 (2018)
doi:10.1103/PhysRevA.97.033401

A. Müller, E. Lindroth, S. Bari, A. Borovik, Jr., P.-M. Hillenbrand, K. Holste, P. Indelicato, A. L. D. Kilcoyne, S. Klumpp, M. Martins, J. Viefhaus, P. Wilhelm, and S. Schippers

In a joint experimental and theoretical endeavor, photoionization of metastable C⁴⁺(1s2s³S₁) ions via intermediate levels with hollow, double-K-vacancy configurations 2s2p, 2s3p, 2p3s, 2p3d, 2s4p, 2p4s, and 2p4d has been investigated. High-resolution photon-ion merged-beams measurements were carried out with the resolving power reaching up to 25 800 which is sufficient to separate the leading fine-structure components of the 2s2p³P term. Many-body perturbation theory was employed to determine level-to-level cross sections for K-shell excitation with subsequent autoionization. The resonance energies were calculated with inclusion of electron correlation and radiative contributions. Their uncertainties are estimated to be below ±1 meV. Detailed balance confirms the present photoionization cross-section results by comparison with previous dielectronic-recombination measurements. The high accuracy of the theoretical transition energies together with the present experimental results qualify photoabsorption resonances in heliumlike ions as new, greatly improved energy-reference standards at synchrotron radiation facilities.

Phys. Rev. A 98, 033416 (2018)

A. Müller, A. Borovik, Jr., S. Bari, T. Buhr, K. Holste, M. Martins, A. Perry-Saßmannshausen, R. A. Phaneuf, S. Reinwardt, S. Ricz, K. Schubert, and S. Schippers

Double and triple detachment of the F⁻(1s²2s²2p⁶) negative ion by a single photon have been investigated in the photon energy range 660 to 1000 eV. The experimental data provide unambiguous evidence for the dominant role of direct photodouble detachment with a subsequent single-Auger process in the reaction channel leading to F²+ product ions. Absolute cross sections were determined for the direct removal of a (1s+2p) pair of electrons from F⁻ by the absorption of a single photon.

Phys.Rev.Lett. 120 133202(2018)

L. Müller, G. Hartmann, S. Schleitzer, M. H. Berntsen, M. Walther, R. Rysov, W. Roseker, F. Scholz, J. Seltmann, L. Glaser, J. Viefhaus, K. Mertens, K. Bagschik, R. Frömter, A. De Fanis, I. Shevchuk, K. Medjanik, G. Öhrwall, H. P. Oepen, M. Martins, M. Meyer, and G. Grübel

A transmission polarizer for producing elliptically polarized soft X-ray radiation from linearly polarized light is presented. The setup is intended for use at synchrotron and free-electron laser beamlines that do not directly offer circularly polarized light for, e.g., X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) measurements or holographic imaging. Here, we investigate the degree of ellipticity upon transmission of linearly polarized radiation through a cobalt thin film. The experiment was performed at a photon energy resonant to the Co L₃-edge, i.e., 778 eV, and the polarization of the transmitted radiation was determined using a polarization analyzer that measures the directional dependence of photo electrons emitted from a gas target. Elliptically polarized radiation can be created at any absorption edge showing the XMCD effect by using the respective magnetic element.

Rev.Sci.Instrum. 89, 036103 (2018)

W. Helml, I. Grguras, P. N. Juranic, S. Düsterer, T. Mazza, A. R. Maier, N. Hartmann, M. Ilchen, G. Hartmann, L. Patthey, C. Callegari, J. T. Costello, M. Meyer, R. N. Coffee, A. L. Cavalieri, R. Kienberger

For the investigation of processes happening on the time scale of the motion of bound electrons, well-controlled X-ray pulses with durations in the few-femtosecond and even sub-femtosecond range are a necessary prerequisite. Novel free-electron lasers sources provide these ultrashort, high-brightness X-ray pulses, but their unique aspects open up concomitant challenges for their characterization on a suitable time scale. In this review paper we describe progress and results of recent work on ultrafast pulse characterization at soft and hard X-ray free-electron lasers. We report on different approaches to laser-assisted time-domain measurements, with specific focus on single-shot characterization of ultrashort X-ray pulses from self-amplified spontaneous emission-based and seeded free-electron lasers. The method relying on the sideband measurement of X-ray electron ionization in the presence of a dressing optical laser field is described first. When the X-ray pulse duration is shorter than half the oscillation period of the streaking field, few-femtosecond characterization becomes feasible via linear streaking spectroscopy. Finally, using terahertz fields alleviates the issue of arrival time jitter between streaking laser and X-ray pulse, but compromises the achievable temporal resolution. Possible solutions to these remaining challenges for single-shot, full time–energy characterization of X-ray free-electron laser pulses are proposed in the outlook at the end of the review.

Appl. Sci. 7, 915 (2017)

M. Waitz, R.Y. Bello, D. Metz, J. Lower, F. Trinter, C. Schober, M. Keiling, U. Lenz, M. Pitzer, K. Mertens, M. Martins, J. Viefhaus, S. Klumpp, T. Weber, L.Ph.H. Schmidt, J.B. Williams, M.S. Schöffler, V.V. Serov, A.S. Kheifets, L. Argenti, A. Palacios, F. Martı́n, T. Jahnke, and R. Dörner

The toolbox for imaging molecules is well-equipped today. Some techniques visualize the geometrical structure, others the electron density or electron orbitals. Molecules are many-body systems for which the correlation between the constituents is decisive and the spatial and the momentum distribution of one electron depends on those of the other electrons and the nuclei. Such correlations have escaped direct observation by imaging techniques so far. Here, we implement an imaging scheme which visualizes correlations between electrons by coincident detection of the reaction fragments after high energy photofragmentation. With this technique, we examine the H₂ two-electron wave function in which electron–electron correlation beyond the mean-field level is prominent. We visualize the dependence of the wave function on the internuclear distance. High energy photoelectrons are shown to be a powerful tool for molecular imaging. Our study paves the way for future time resolved correlation imaging at FELs and laser based X-ray sources.

Nat.Comm. 8 2266 (2017)

S. Klumpp, N. Gerken, K. Mertens, M. Richter, B. Sonntag, A. A. Sorokin, M. Braune, K. Tiedtke, P. Zimmermann and M. Martins

The multiple ionisation of atomic Mn, excited at (photon energy: 52.1 eV) and above (photon energy: 61.1 eV) the discrete giant 3p-3d resonance, was studied using high irradiation free-electron-laser soft x-ray pulses from the BL2 beamline of FLASH, DESY, Hamburg. In particular, the impact of the giant resonance on the ionisation mechanism was investigated. Ion mass-over-charge spectra were obtained by means of ion time-of-flight spectrometry. For the two photon energies, the yield of the different ionic charge states Mnq+ (q = 0–7) was determined as a function of the irradiance of the soft x-ray pulses. The maximum charge state observed was Mn⁶⁺ for resonant excitation at 52.1 eV and Mn⁷⁺ for non-resonant excitation at 61.1 eV at a maximum irradiation of 3 x 10 ¹³ Wcm -² .

New J. Phys. 19, 043002 (2017)

M. Ilchen, T. Mazza, E. T. Karamatskos, D. Markellos, S. Bakhtiarzadeh, A. J. Rafipoor, T. J. Kelly, N. Walsh, J. T. Costello, P. O’Keeffe, N. Gerken, M. Martins, P. Lambropoulos, M. Meyer

In a combined experimental and theoretical study we have investigated the ionization of atomic argon upon irradiation with intense soft-x-ray pulses of 105 eV photon energy from the free-electron laser FLASH. The measured ion yields show charge states up to Ar⁷⁺. The comparison with the theoretical study of the underlying photoionization dynamics highlights the importance of excited states in general and of processes governed by electron correlation in particular, namely, ionization with excitation and shake-off, processes usually inaccessible by measurements of ionic yields only. The Ar⁷⁺ yield shows a clear deviation from the predictions of the commonly used model of sequential ionization via single-electron processes and the observed signal can only be explained by taking into account the full multiplet structure of the involved configurations and by inclusion of two-electron processes. The competing process of two-photon ionization from the ground state of Ar⁶⁺ is calculated to be orders of magnitude smaller.

Phys. Rev. A 94, 013413 (2016)

K. Mertens, N. Gerken, S. Klumpp, M. Braune and M. Martins

The fragmentation pattern of the iodine-containing molecules CH₂I₂ and CH₃I following a strong multiphoton excitation in the vicinity of the iodine 4d giant resonance regime is studied using soft X-ray free electron laser radiation. A strong difference of the charge distribution and the kinetic energy release (KER) for the two molecules is found. The effects can be attributed to charge rearrangement processes induced by the photoexcitation. The difference in the observed distribution for higher charge states of iodine and carbon fragments is consistent with an over-the-barrier model for the charge rearrangement in the dissociating molecules. The KER for singly ionised carbon fragments indicates an ultrafast charge rearrangement before the dissociation starts.

J.Mod.Opt.,DOI 10.1080/09500340.2015.1046521 (2015)

T. Mazza, A. Karamatskou, M. Ilchen, S. Bakhtiarzadeh, A. J. Rafipoor, P. O’Keeffe, T. J. Kelly, N. Walsh, J. T. Costello, M. Meyer, R. Santra

Collective behaviour is a characteristic feature in many-body systems, important for developments in fields such as magnetism, superconductivity, photonics and electronics. Recently, there has been increasing interest in the optically nonlinear response of collective excitations. Here we demonstrate how the nonlinear interaction of a many-body system with intense XUV radiation can be used as an effective probe for characterizing otherwise unresolved features of its collective response. Resonant photoionization of atomic xenon was chosen as a case study. The excellent agreement between experiment and theory strongly supports the prediction that two distinct poles underlie the giant dipole resonance. Our results pave the way towards a deeper understanding of collective behaviour in atoms, molecules and solid-state systems using nonlinear spectroscopic techniques enabled by modern short-wavelength light sources.

Nature Communications 6, Article number: 6799 (2015)

A. Müller, A. Borovik, Jr., T. Buhr, J. Hellhund, K. Holste, A. L. D. Kilcoyne, S. Klumpp, M. Martins, S. Ricz, J. Viefhaus, S. Schippers

Single, double, and triple ionization of C¹⁺ ions by single photons is investigated in the energy range of 286–326 eV, i.e., in the range from the lowest-energy K-vacancy resonances to well beyond the K-shell ionization threshold. Clear signatures of C¹⁺(1s2s²2p^2 2D,²P) resonances are found in the triple-ionization channel. The only possible mechanism producing C⁴⁺(1s²) via these resonances is direct triple-Auger decay, i.e., a four-electron process with simultaneous emission of three electrons.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 013002 (2015)

M. Zitnik, A. Mihelic, K. Bucar, M. Kavcic, J.-E. Rubensson, M. Svanquist, J. Söderström, R. Feifel, C. Sathe, Y. Ovcharenko, V. Lyamayev, T. Mazza, M. Meyer, M. Simon, L. Journel, J. Lüning, O. Plekan, M. Coreno, M. Devetta, M. Di Fraia, et. al

Seeded free electron lasers theoretically have the intensity, tunability, and resolution required for multiphoton spectroscopy of atomic and molecular species. Using the seeded free electron laser FERMI and a novel detection scheme, we have revealed the two-photon excitation spectra of dipole-forbidden doubly excited states in helium. The spectral profiles of the lowest (−1,0)^{+1 1}S^e and (0,1)^{0 1}D^e resonances display energy shifts in the meV range that depend on the pulse intensity. The results are explained by an effective two-level model based on calculated Rabi frequencies and decay rates.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 113, 193201 (2014)

N. Gerken, S. Klumpp, A. A. Sorokin, K. Tiedtke, M. Richter, V. Bürk, K. Mertens, P. Jurani, M. Martins

The time-dependent multiphoton ionization of xenon atoms is studied with femtosecond pulses in the excitation range of the 4d giant resonance at the photon energy of 93 eV. Benefiting from a new operation mode of the free electron laser FLASH, the measurements are performed with varying pulse durations. A strong dependence of the ion charge distribution on the pulse duration allows the different multiphoton mechanisms behind the multiple photoionization of xenon to be disentangled up to a charge state of Xe1⁰⁺. The results up to X^e8+ are well explained by sequences of single photon, multiphoton, and Auger processes, but higher charge state generation suggests the need for collective electron multiphoton excitations.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 112, 213002 (2014)

Michael Diez, Henning Kirchberg, Andreas Galler, Sebastian Schulz, Mykola Biednov, Christina Bömer, Tae-Kyu Choi, Angel Rodriguez-Fernandez, Wojciech Gawelda, Dmitry Khakhulin, Katharina Kubicek, Frederico Lima, Florian Otte, Peter Zalden, Ryan Coffee, Michael Thorwart, and Christian Bressler

X-ray free-electron laser sources enable time-resolved X-ray studies with unmatched temporal resolution. To fully exploit ultrashort X-ray pulses, timing tools are essential. However, new high repetition rate X-ray facilities present challenges for currently used timing tool schemes. Here we address this issue by demonstrating a sensitive timing tool scheme to enhance experimental time resolution in pump-probe experiments at very high pulse repetition rates. Our method employs a self-referenced detection scheme using a time-sheared chirped optical pulse traversing an X-ray stimulated diamond plate. By formulating an effective medium theory, we confirm subtle refractive index changes, induced by sub-milli-Joule intense X-ray pulses, that are measured in our experiment. The system utilizes a Common-Path-Interferometer to detect X-ray-induced phase shifts of the optical probe pulse transmitted through the diamond sample. Owing to the thermal stability of diamond, our approach is well-suited for MHz pulse repetition rates in superconducting linear accelerator-based free-electron lasers.

Nat Commun 14, 2495 (2023)

P. Vester, K. Kubicek, T. Assefa, E. Biasin, M. Christensen, A. O. Dohn, T. B. van Driehl, A. Galler, W. Gawelda, T. C. B. Harlang, N. E. Henriksen, K. S. Kjaer, T. S. Kuhlmann, Z. Németh, Z. Nurekeyev, M. Papai, G. Vankó, H. Yavas, D. B. Zederkof, U. Bergmann, M. M. Nielsen, K. B. Moller, K. Haldrup, and C. Bressler

We present a sub-picosecond resolved investigation of the structural solvent reorganization and geminate recombination dynamics following 400 nm two-photon excitation and photodetachment of a valence p electron from the aqueous atomic solute, I⁻(aq). The measurements utilized time-resolved X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (TR-XANES) spectroscopy and X-ray Solution Scattering (TR-XSS) at the Linac Coherent Light Source x-ray free electron laser in a laser pump/x-ray probe experiment. The XANES measurements around the L₁-edge of the generated nascent iodine atoms (I⁰) yield an average electron ejection distance from the iodine parent of 7.4 ± 1.5 Å with an excitation yield of about 1/3 of the 0.1M NaI aqueous solution. The kinetic traces of the XANES measurement are in agreement with a purely diffusion-driven geminate iodine–electron recombination model without the need for a long-lived (I⁰:e−) contact pair. Nonequilibrium classical molecular dynamics simulations indicate a delayed response of the caging H₂O solvent shell and this is supported by the structural analysis of the XSS data: We identify a two-step process exhibiting a 0.1 ps delayed solvent shell reorganization time within the tight H-bond network and a 0.3 ps time constant for the mean iodine–oxygen distance changes. The results indicate that most of the reorganization can be explained classically by a transition from a hydrophilic cavity with a well-ordered first solvation shell (hydrogens pointing toward I⁻) to an expanded cavity around I⁰ with a more random orientation of the H₂O molecules in a broadened first solvation shell.

J. Chem. Phys 157, 22401 (2022)

Miguel Ochmann, Vinícius Vaz da Cruz, Sebastian Eckert, Nils Huse and Alexander Föhlisch

The inherent stability of methylated formamides is traced to a stabilization of the deep-lying σ-framework by resonant inelastic X ray scattering at the nitrogen K-edge. Charge transfer from the amide nitrogen to the methyl groups underlie this stabilization mechanism that leaves the aldehyde group essentially unaltered and explains the stability of secondary and tertiary amides.

Chemical Communications, tba (2022)

Matthias Ruppert,  Hanh Bui, Laxmi Kishore Sagar, Pieter Geiregat, Zeger Hens, Gabriel Bester and Nils Huse

Femtosecond pump–probe spectroscopy reveals ultrafast carrier dynamics in mid-infrared (MIR) colloidal HgTe nanoparticles with a bandgap of 2.5 μm. We observe intraband relaxation processes after photoexcitation ranging from resonant excitation up to the multi-exciton generation (MEG) regime by identifying initially excited states from atomic effective pseudopotential calculations. Our study elucidates the earliest dynamics below 10 ps in this technologically relevant material. With increasing photon energy, we find carrier relaxation times as long as 2.1 ps in the MEG regime close to the ionization threshold of the particles. For all photon energies, we extract a constant mean carrier energy dissipation rate of 0.36 eV ps⁻¹ from which we infer negligible impact of the density of states on carrier cooling.

Nanoscale, 14, 4123-4130 (2022)

A. Britz, S. I. Bokarev, T. A. Assefa, E. G. Bajnóczi, Z. Németh, G. Vankó, N. Rockstroh, H. Junge, M. Beller, G. Doumy, A. M. March, S. H. Southworth, S. Lochbrunner, C. Bressler, W. Gawelda

Time-resolved X-ray absorption spectroscopy has been utilized to monitor the bimolecular electron transfer in a photocatalytic water splitting system. This has been possible by uniting the local probe and element specific character of X-ray transitions with insights from high-level ab initio calculations. The specific target has been a heteroleptic [Ir^III(ppy)₂(bpy)]⁺ photosensitizer, in combination with triethylamine as a sacrificial reductant and Fe₃ (CO)₁₂ as a water reduction catalyst. The relevant molecular transitions have been characterized via high-resolution Ir L-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy on the picosecond time scale and restricted active space self-consistent field calculations. The presented methods and results will enhance our understanding of functionally relevant bimolecular electron transfer reactions and thus will pave the road to rational optimization of photocatalytic performance.

ChemPhysChem 22, 693-700 (2021)

Sebastian Eckert, Vinícius Vaz da Cruz, Miguel Ochmann, Inga von Ahnen, Alexander Föhlisch, and Nils Huse

Symmetry and its breaking crucially define the chemical properties of molecules and their functionality. Resonant inelastic X-ray scattering is a local electronic structure probe reporting on molecular symmetry and its dynamical breaking within the femtosecond scattering duration. Here, we study pyrimidine, a system from the C_2v point group, in an aqueous solution environment, using scattering though its 2a₂ resonance. Despite the absence of clean parity selection rules for decay transitions from in-plane orbitals, scattering channels including decay from the 7b₂ and 11a₁ orbitals with nitrogen lone pair character are a direct probe for molecular symmetry. Computed spectra of explicitly solvated molecules sampled from a molecular dynamics simulation are combined with the results of a quantum dynamical description of the X-ray scattering process. We observe dominant signatures of core-excited Jahn–Teller induced symmetry breaking for resonant excitation. Solvent contributions are separable by shortening of the effective scattering duration through excitation energy detuning.

J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 12, 8637–8643 (2021)

Raphael M. Jay, Sebastian Eckert, Benjamin E. Van Kuiken, Miguel Ochmann, Markus Hantschmann, Amy A. Cordones, Hana Cho, Kiryong Hong, Rory Ma, Jae Hyuk Lee, Georgi L. Dakovski, Joshua J. Turner, Michael P. Minitti, Wilson Quevedo, Annette Pietzsch, Martin Beye, Tae Kyu Kim, Robert W. Schoenlein, Philippe Wernet, Alexander Föhlisch, and Nils Huse

We demonstrate for the case of photoexcited [Ru(2,2′-bipyridine)₃]²⁺ how femtosecond resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) at the ligand K-edge allows one to uniquely probe changes in the valence electronic structure following a metal-to-ligand charge-transfer (MLCT) excitation. Metal–ligand hybridization is probed by nitrogen-1s resonances providing information on both the electron-accepting ligand in the MLCT state and the hole density of the metal center. By comparing to spectrum calculations based on density functional theory, we are able to distinguish the electronic structure of the electron-accepting ligand and the other ligands and determine a temporal upper limit of (250 ± 40) fs for electron localization following the charge-transfer excitation. The spin of the localized electron is deduced from the selection rules of the RIXS process establishing new experimental capabilities for probing transient charge and spin densities.

J. Phys. Chem. Lett. , 12, 6676–6683 (2021)

Yohei Uemura, Ahmed S. M. Ismail, Sang Han Park, Soonnam Kwon, Minseok Kim, Yasuhiro Niwa, Hiroki Wadati, Hebatalla Elnaggar, Federica Frati, Ties Haarman, Niko Höppel, Nils Huse, Yasuyuki Hirata, Yujun Zhang, Kohei Yamagami, Susumu Yamamoto, Iwao Matsuda, Tetsuo Katayama, Tadashi Togashi, Shigeki Owada, Makina Yabashi, Uufuk Halisdemir, Gertjan Koster, Toshihiko Yokoyama, Bert M. Weckhuysen, and Frank M. F. de Groot

Copper tungstate (CuWO₄) is an important semiconductor with a sophisticated and debatable electronic structure that has a direct impact on its chemistry. Using the PAL-XFEL source, we study the electronic dynamics of photoexcited CuWO₄. The Cu L₃ X-ray absorption spectrum shifts to lower energy upon photoexcitation, which implies that the photoexcitation process from the oxygen valence band to the tungsten conduction band effectively increases the charge density on the Cu atoms. The decay time of this spectral change is 400 fs indicating that the increased charge density exists only for a very short time and relaxes electronically. The initial increased charge density gives rise to a structural change on a time scale longer than 200 ps.

J. Phys. Chem. C 125, 7329–7336 (2021)

R. N. Coffee, N. Hartmann, R. Heider, M. S. Wagner, W. Helml, T. Katayama, T. Sato, T. Sato, M. Yabashi, C. Bressler

We present a novel, highly versatile, and self-referenced arrival time monitor for measuring the femtosecond time delay between a hard X-ray pulse from a free-electron laser and an optical laser pulse, measured directly on the same sample used for pump-probe experiments. Two chirped and picosecond long optical supercontinuum pulses traverse the sample with a mutually fixed time delay of 970 fs, while a femtosecond X-ray pulse arrives at an instant in between both pulses. Behind the sample the supercontinuum pulses are temporally overlapped to yield near-perfect destructive interference in the absence of the X-ray pulse. Stimulation of the sample with an X-ray pulse delivers non-zero contributions at certain optical wavelengths, which serve as a measure of the relative arrival time of the X-ray pulse with an accuracy of better than 25 fs. We find an excellent agreement of our monitor with the existing timing diagnostics at the SACLA XFEL with a Pearson correlation value of 0.98. We demonstrate a high sensitivity to measure X-ray pulses with pulse energies as low as 30 μJ. Using a free-flowing liquid jet as interaction sample ensures the full replacement of the sample volume for each X-ray/optical event, thus enabling its utility even at MHz repetition rate XFEL sources.

Scientific Reports volume 11, Article number: 3562 (2021)

Robin Y. Engel, Maria Ekimova, Piter S. Miedema, Carlo Kleine, Jan Ludwig, Miguel Ochmann, BenjaminGrimm-Lebsanft, Rory Ma, Melissa Teubner, Siarhei Dziarzhytski, Günter Brenner, Marie Kristin Czwalinna,Benedikt Rösner, Tae Kyu Kim, Christian David, Sonja Herres-Pawlis, Michael Rübhausen, Erik T. J. Nibbering, Nils Huse, and Martin Beye

X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy provides element specificity and is a powerful experimental method to probelocal unoccupied electronic structures. In the soft x-ray regime, it is especially well suited for the study of 3d-metals and light elements suchas nitrogen. Recent developments in vacuum-compatible liquid flat jets have facilitated soft x-ray transmission spectroscopy on molecules insolution, providing information on valence charge distributions of heteroatoms and metal centers. Here, we demonstrate XANES spectros-copy of molecules in solution at the nitrogen K-edge, performed at FLASH, the Free-Electron Laser (FEL) in Hamburg. A split-beamreferencing scheme optimally characterizes the strong shot-to-shot fluctuations intrinsic to the process of self-amplified spontaneousemission on which most FELs are based. Due to this normalization, a sensitivity of 1% relative transmission change is achieved, limited byfundamental photon shot noise. The effective FEL bandwidth is increased by streaking the electron energy over the FEL pulse train tomeasure a wider spectral window without changing FEL parameters. We propose modifications to the experimental setup with the potentialof improving the instrument sensitivity by two orders of magnitude, thereby exploiting the high peak fluence of FELs to enableunprecedented sensitivity for femtosecond XANES spectroscopy on liquids in the soft x-ray spectral region.

Structural Dynamics 8, 014303 (2021)

M. Naumova, A.Kalinko, J. W. L. Wong, S. Alvarez Gutierez, J. Meng, M. Liang, M. Abdellah, H. Geng, W.Lin, K. Kubicek, M. Biednov, F. Lima, A. Galler, P. Zalden, S. Checchia, P. Mante, J. Zimara, D. Schwarzer, S. Demeshko, V. Y. Murzin, D. J Gosztola, M. Jarenmark, J. Zhang, M. Bauer, L. Max Lawson Daku, D. Khakhulin, W. Gawelda, C. Bressler, F. Meyer, K. Zheng, S. E. Canton

Oligonuclear complexes of d⁴–d⁷ transition metal ion centers that undergo spin-switching have long been developed for their practical role in molecular electronics. Recently, they also have appeared as promising photochemical reactants demonstrating improved stability. However, the lack of knowledge about their photophysical properties in the solution phase compared to mononuclear complexes is currently hampering their inclusion into advanced light-driven reactions. In the present study, the ultrafast photoinduced dynamics in a solvated [2 × 2] iron(II) metallogrid complex are characterized by combining measurements with transient optical-infrared absorption and x-ray emission spectroscopy on the femtosecond time scale. The analysis is supported by density functional theory calculations. The photocycle can be described in terms of intra-site transitions, where the FeII centers in the low-spin state are independently photoexcited. The Franck–Condon state decays via the formation of a vibrationally hot high-spin (HS) state that displays coherent behavior within a few picoseconds and thermalizes within tens of picoseconds to yield a metastable HS state living for several hundreds of nanoseconds. Systematic comparison with the closely related mononuclear complex [Fe(terpy)₂]²⁺ reveals that nuclearity has a profound impact on the photoinduced dynamics. More generally, this work provides guidelines for expanding the integration of oligonuclear complexes into new photoconversion schemes that may be triggered by ultrafast spin-switching.

J. Chem. Phys. 152, 214301 (2020)

Henning Kirchberg and Michael Thorwart

The time-dependent fluorescence Stokes shift monitors the relaxation of the polarization of a polar solvent in the surroundings of a photoexcited solute molecule but also the structural variation of the solute following photoexcitation and the subsequent molecular charge redistribution. Here, we formulate a simple nonequilibrium quantum theory of solvation for an explicitly time-dependent continuous solvent. The time-dependent solvent induces nonequilibrium fluctuations on the solvent dynamics which are directly reflected in different time components in the time-dependent Stokes shift. We illustrate the structural dynamics in the presence of an explicitly time-dependent solvent by the example of a dynamically shrinking solute which leads to a bimodal Stokes shift. Interestingly, both contributions are mutually coupled. Furthermore, we can explain a prominent long-tail decay of the Stokes shift associated with slow structural dynamical variations.

J. Phys. Chem. B 124, 5717 (2020)

M. Naumova, A.Kalinko, J. W. L. Wong, M. Abdellah, H. Geng, E. Domenichini, J. Meng, S. Alvarez Gutierez, P.-A. Mante, W.Lin, P. Zalden, A. Galler, F. Alves Lima, K. Kubicek, M. Biednov, A. Britz, S. Checchia, V. Kabanova, M. Wulff, J. Zimara, D. Schwarzer, S. Demeshko, V. Y. Murzin, D. J Gosztola, M. Jarenmark, J. Zhang, M. Bauer, L. Max Lawson Daku, W. Gawelda, D. Khakhulin, C. Bressler, F. Meyer, K. Zheng, S. E. Canton

An atomistic understanding of the photoinduced spin-state switching (PSS) within polynuclear systems of d⁴–d⁷ transition metal ion complexes is required for their rational integration into light-driven reactions of chemical and biological interest. However, in contrast to mononuclear systems, the multidimensional dynamics of the PSS in solvated molecular arrays have not yet been elucidated due to the expected complications associated with the connectivity between the metal centers and the strong interactions with the surroundings. In this work, the PSS in a solvated triiron(II) metallogrid complex is characterized using transient optical absorption and X-ray emission spectroscopies on the femtosecond time scale. The complementary measurements reveal the photoinduced creation of energy-rich (hot) and long-lived quintet states, whose dynamics differ critically from their mononuclear congeners. This finding opens major prospects for developing novel schemes in solution-phase spin chemistry that are driven by the dynamic PSS process in compact oligometallic arrays.

J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 11, 2133-2141 (2020)

D. Khakhulin, F. Otte, M. Biednov, C. Bömer, T.-K. Choi, M. Diez, A. Galler, Y. Jiang, K. Kubicek, F. A. Lima, A. Rodriguez-Fernandez, P. Zalden, W. Gawelda, C. Bressler

Time-resolved X-ray methods are widely used for monitoring transient intermediates over the course of photochemical reactions. Ultrafast X-ray absorption and emission spectroscopies as well as elastic X-ray scattering deliver detailed electronic and structural information on chemical dynamics in the solution phase. In this work, we describe the opportunities at the Femtosecond X-ray Experiments (FXE) instrument of European XFEL. Guided by the idea of combining spectroscopic and scattering techniques in one experiment, the FXE instrument has completed the initial commissioning phase for most of its components and performed first successful experiments within the baseline capabilities. This is demonstrated by its currently 115 fs (FWHM) temporal resolution to acquire ultrafast X-ray emission spectra by simultaneously recording iron Kα and Kβ lines, next to wide angle X-ray scattering patterns on a photoexcited aqueous solution of [Fe(bpy)₃]²⁺, a transition metal model compound.

Appl. Sci. 10, 995 (2020)

Henning Kirchberg, Peter Nalbach, Christian Bressler, and Michael Thorwart

When a hydrophilic solute in water is suddenly turned into a hydrophobic species, for instance, by photoionization, a layer of hydrated water molecules forms around the solute on a time scale of a few picoseconds. We study the dynamic buildup of the hydration shell around a hydrophobic solute on the basis of a time-dependent dielectric continuum model. Information about the solvent is spectroscopically extracted from the relaxation dynamics of a test dipole inside a static Onsager sphere in the nonequilibrium solvent. The growth process is described phenomenologically within two approaches. First, we consider a time-dependent thickness of the hydration layer that grows from zero to a finite value over a finite time. Second, we assume a time-dependent complex permittivity within a finite layer region around the Onsager sphere. The layer is modeled as a continuous dielectric with a much slower fluctuation dynamics. We find a time-dependent frequency shift down to the blue of the resonant absorption of the dipole, together with a dynamically decreasing line width, as compared to bulk water. The blue shift reflects the work performed against the hydrogen-bonded network of the bulk solvent and is a directly measurable quantity. Our results are in agreement with an experiment on the hydrophobic solvation of iodine in water.

J. Phys. Chem. B 123, 2106 (2019)

Alexander Britz, Wojciech Gawelda, Tadesse A. Assefa, Lindsey L. Jamula, Jonathan T. Yarranton, Andreas Galler, Dmitry Khakhulin, Michael Diez, Manuel Harder, Gilles Doumy, Anne Marie March, Éva Bajnóczi, Zoltán Németh, Mátyás Pápai, Emese Rozsályi, Dorottya Sárosiné Szemes, Hana Cho, Sriparna Mukherjee, Chang Liu, Tae Kyu Kim, Robert W. Schoenlein, Stephen H. Southworth, Linda Young, Elena Jakubikova, Nils Huse, György Vankó, Christian Bressler, and James K. McCusker

We have employed a range of ultrafast X-ray spectroscopies in an effort to characterize the lowest energy excited state of [Fe(dcpp)2]²⁺ (where dcpp is 2,6-(dicarboxypyridyl)pyridine). This compound exhibits an unusually short excited-state lifetime for a low-spin Fe(II) polypyridyl complex of 270 ps in a room-temperature fluid solution, raising questions as to whether the ligand-field strength of dcpp had pushed this system beyond the ⁵T₂/³T₁ crossing point and stabilizing the latter as the lowest energy excited state. Kα and Kβ X-ray emission spectroscopies have been used to unambiguously determine the quintet spin multiplicity of the long-lived excited state, thereby establishing the ⁵T₂ state as the lowest energy excited state of this compound. Geometric changes associated with the photoinduced ligand-field state conversion have also been monitored with extended X-ray absorption fine structure. The data show the typical average Fe-ligand bond length elongation of ∼0.18 Å for a ⁵T₂ state and suggest a high anisotropy of the primary coordination sphere around the metal center in the excited ⁵T₂ state, in stark contrast to the nearly perfect octahedral symmetry that characterizes the low-spin ¹A₁ ground state structure. This study illustrates how the application of time-resolved X-ray techniques can provide insights into the electronic structures of molecules—in particular, transition metal complexes—that are difficult if not impossible to obtain by other means.

Inorg. Chem. , 58, 14, 9341–9350 (2019)

A. Cordones, J. Hyuk Lee, K. Hong, H. Cho, K. Garg, M. Boggio-Pasqua, J. Rack, N. Huse, R. W. Schoenlein, T. Kyu Kim

Ultrafast isomerization reactions underpin many processes in (bio)chemical systems and molecular materials. Understanding the coupled evolution of atomic and molecular structure during isomerization is paramount for control and rational design in molecular science. Here we report transient X-ray absorption studies of the photo-induced linkage isomerization of a Ru-based photochromic molecule. X-ray spectra reveal the spin and valence charge of the Ru atom and provide experimental evidence that metal-centered excited states mediate isomerization. Complementary X-ray spectra of the functional ligand S atoms probe the nuclear structural rearrangements, highlighting the formation of two metal-centered states with different metal-ligand bonding. These results address an essential open question regarding the relative roles of transient charge-transfer and metal-centered states in mediating photoisomerization. Global temporal and spectral data analysis combined with time-dependent density functional theory reveals a complex mechanism for photoisomerization with atomic details of the transient molecular and electronic structure not accessible by other means.

Nature Communications (2018)

Henning Kirchberg, Peter Nalbach, and Michael Thorwart

We formulate a theory of nonequilibrium quantum solvation in which parameters of the solvent are explicitly depending on time. We assume in a simplest approach a spherical molecular Onsager cavity with a time-dependent radius. We analyze the relaxation properties of a test molecular point dipole in a dielectric solvent and consider two cases: (i) a shrinking Onsager sphere and (ii) a breathing Onsager sphere. Due to the time-dependent solvent, the frequency-dependent response function of the dipole becomes time-dependent. For a shrinking Onsager sphere, the dipole relaxation is in general enhanced. This is reflected in a temporally increasing linewidth of the absorptive part of the response. Furthermore, the effective frequency-dependent response function shows two peaks in the absorptive part which are symmetrically shifted around the eigenfrequency. By contrast, a breathing sphere reduces damping as compared to the static sphere. Interestingly, we find a non-monotonous dependence of the relaxation rate on the breathing rate and a resonant suppression of damping when both rates are comparable. Moreover, the linewidth of the absorptive part of the response function is strongly reduced for times when the breathing sphere reaches its maximal extension.

J. Chem. Phys. 148, 164301 (2018)

M. Ochmann, A. Hussain, I. von Ahnen, A. A. Cordones, K. Hong, J. H. Lee, R. Ma, K. Adamczyk, O. Vendrell, T. K. Kim, R. W. Schoenlein, and N. Huse

We have investigated dimethyl disulfide as the basic moiety for understanding the photochemistry of disulfide bonds, which are central to a broad range of biochemical processes. Picosecond time-resolved X-ray absorption spectroscopy at the sulfur K-edge provides unique element-specific insight into the photochemistry of the disulfide bond initiated by 267 nm femtosecond pulses. We observe a broad but distinct transient induced absorption spectrum which recovers on at least two time scales in the nanosecond range. We employed RASSCF electronic structure calculations to simulate the sulfur-1s transitions of multiple possible chemical species, and identified the methylthiyl and methylperthiyl radicals as the primary reaction products. In addition, we identify disulfur and the CH₂S thione as the secondary reaction products of the perthiyl radical that are most likely to explain the observed spectral and kinetic signatures of our experiment. Our study underscores the importance of elemental specificity and the potential of time-resolved X-ray spectroscopy to identify short-lived reaction products in complex reaction schemes that underlie the rich photochemistry of disulfide systems.

J. Am. Chem. Soc. 140, 6554 (2018)

B. Maerz, D. Göries, M. Naumova, M. Biednov, G. Neuber, A. Wetzel, S. M. Hofmann, P. Roedig, A. Meents, J. Bielecki, J. Andreasson, K. R. Beyerlein, H. N. Chapman, C. Bressler, W. Zinth, M. Rübhausen, and S. Herres-Pawlis

The entatic state denotes a distorted coordination geometry of a complex from its typical arrangement that generates an improvement to its function. The entatic-state principle has been observed to apply to copper electron-transfer proteins and it results in a lowering of the reorganization energy of the electron-transfer process. It is thus crucial for a multitude of biochemical processes, but its importance to photoactive complexes is unexplored. Here we study a copper complex—with a specifically designed constraining ligand geometry—that exhibits metal-to-ligand charge-transfer state lifetimes that are very short. The guanidine–quinoline ligand used here acts on the bis(chelated) copper(I) centre, allowing only small structural changes after photoexcitation that result in very fast structural dynamics. The data were collected using a multimethod approach that featured time-resolved ultraviolet–visible, infrared and X-ray absorption and optical emission spectroscopy. Through supporting density functional calculations, we deliver a detailed picture of the structural dynamics in the picosecond-to-nanosecond time range.

Nature Chemistry 10, 355 (2018)

A. March, T. Assefa, C. Bömer, C. Bressler, A. Britz, M. Diez, G. Doumy, A. Galler, M. Harder, D. Khakhulin, Z. Németh, M. Pápai, S. Schulz, S. H. Southworth, H. Yavas, L. Young, W. Gawelda, and G. Vankó

We probe the dynamics of valence electrons in photoexcited [Fe(terpy)₂]²⁺ in solution to gain deeper insight into the Fe–ligand bond changes. We use hard X-ray emission spectroscopy (XES), which combines element specificity and high penetration with sensitivity to orbital structure, making it a powerful technique for molecular studies in a wide variety of environments. A picosecond-time-resolved measurement of the complete 1s X-ray emission spectrum captures the transient photoinduced changes and includes the weak valence-to-core (vtc) emission lines that correspond to transitions from occupied valence orbitals to the nascent core-hole. Vtc-XES offers particular insight into the molecular orbitals directly involved in the light-driven dynamics; a change in the metal–ligand orbital overlap results in an intensity reduction and a blue energy shift in agreement with our theoretical calculations and more subtle features at the highest energies reflect changes in the frontier orbital populations.

J. Phys. Chem. C 121, 2620 (2017)

A. Schori, C. Bömer, D. Borodin, S. P. Collins, B. Detlefs, M. Moretti Sala, S. Yudovich, and S. Shwartz

We report the observation of parametrically down-converted x-ray signal photons at photon energies that correspond to idler photons at optical wavelengths. The count-rate dependence on the angles of the input beam and of the detector and on the slit sizes agrees with theory within the experimental uncertainties. The nonlinear susceptibility, which we calculated from the measured efficiencies, is comparable to the nonlinear susceptibility evaluated from the measurements of x-ray and optical wave mixing. The results of the present Letter advance the development of a spectroscopy method for probing valence-electron charges and the microscopic optical response of crystals with atomic-scale resolution.

Physical review letters 119, 25, 253902 (2017)

M. Ochmann, I. von Ahnen, A. A. Cordones, A. Hussain, J. H. Lee, K. Hong, K. Adamczyk, O. Vendrell , T. K. Kim , R. W. Schoenlein, N. Huse

We applied time-resolved sulfur-1s absorption spectroscopy to a model aromatic thiol system as a promising method for tracking chemical reactions in solution. Sulfur-1s absorption spectroscopy allows tracking multiple sulfur species with a time resolution of ∼70 ps at synchrotron radiation facilities. Experimental transient spectra combined with high-level electronic structure theory allow identification of a radical and two thione isomers, which are generated upon illumination with 267 nm radiation. Moreover, the regioselectivity of the thione isomerization is explained by the resulting radical frontier orbitals. This work demonstrates the usefulness and potential of time-resolved sulfur-1s absorption spectroscopy for tracking multiple chemical reaction pathways and transient products of sulfur-containing molecules in solution.

J. Am. Chem. Soc. 139, 4797 (2017)

D. Göries, B. Dicke, P. Roedig, N. Stübe, J. Meyer, A. Galler, W. Gawelda, A. Britz, P. Geßler, H. Sotoudi Namin, A. Beckmann, M. Schlie, M. Warmer, M. Naumova, C. Bressler, M. Rübhausen, E. Weckert, and A. Meents

We report about the development and implementation of a new setup for time-resolved X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy at beamline P11 utilizing the outstanding source properties of the low-emittance PETRA III synchrotron storage ring in Hamburg. Using a high intensity micrometer-sized X-ray beam in combination with two positional feedback systems, measurements were performed on the transition metal complex fac-Tris[2-phenylpyridinato-C2,N]iridium(III) also referred to as fac-Ir(ppy)3. This compound is a representative of the phosphorescent iridium(III) complexes, which play an important role in organic light emitting diode (OLED) technology. The experiment could directly prove the anticipated photoinduced charge transfer reaction. Our results further reveal that the temporal resolution of the experiment is limited by the PETRA III X-ray bunch length of ∼103 ps full width at half maximum (FWHM).

Review of Scientific Instruments 87, 053116 (2016)

E. Basin, T. B. van Driel, K. S. Kjaer, A. O. Dohn, M. Christensen, T. Harlang, P. Chabera, Y. Liu, J. Uhlig, M. Pápai, Z. Németh, R. Hartsock, W. Liang, J. Zhang, R. Alonso-Mori, M. Chollet, J. M. Glawnia, S. Nelsen, D. Sokara, T. A. Assefa, A. Britz, A. Galler, W. Gawelda, C. Bressler, K. J. Gaffney, H. T. Lemke, K. B. Moller, M. M. Nielsen, V. Sundström, G. Vankó, K. Wärmark, S. E. Canton, and K. Haldrup

We study the structural dynamics of photoexcited [Co(terpy)₂]²⁺ in an aqueous solution with ultrafast x-ray diffuse scattering experiments conducted at the Linac Coherent Light Source. Through direct comparisons with density functional theory calculations, our analysis shows that the photoexcitation event leads to elongation of the Co-N bonds, followed by coherent Co-N bond length oscillations arising from the impulsive excitation of a vibrational mode dominated by the symmetrical stretch of all six Co-N bonds. This mode has a period of 0.33 ps and decays on a subpicosecond time scale. We find that the equilibrium bond-elongated structure of the high spin state is established on a single-picosecond time scale and that this state has a lifetime of ∼7  ps.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 117, 013002 (2016)

A. Britz, T. Assefa, A. Galler, W. Gawelda, M. Diez, P. Zalden, D. Khakhulin, B. Fernandes, P. Gessler, H. Sotuodi, A. Beckmann, M. Harder, H. Yavas, and C. Bressler

The technical implementation of a multi-MHz data acquisition scheme for laser-X-ray pump-probe experiments with pulse limited temporal resolution (100 ps) is presented. Such techniques are very attractive to benefit from the high-repetition rates of X-ray pulses delivered from advanced synchrotron radiation sources. Exploiting a synchronized 3.9 MHz laser excitation source, experiments in 60-bunch mode (7.8 MHz) at beamline P01 of the PETRA III storage ring are performed. Hereby molecular systems in liquid solutions are excited by the pulsed laser source and the total X-ray fluorescence yield (TFY) from the sample is recorded using silicon avalanche photodiode detectors (APDs). The subsequent digitizer card samples the APD signal traces in 0.5 ns steps with 12-bit resolution. These traces are then processed to deliver an integrated value for each recorded single X-ray pulse intensity and sorted into bins according to whether the laser excited the sample or not. For each subgroup the recorded single-shot values are averaged over ~107 pulses to deliver a mean TFY value with its standard error for each data point, e.g. at a given X-ray probe energy. The sensitivity reaches down to the shot-noise limit, and signal-to-noise ratios approaching 1000 are achievable in only a few seconds collection time per data point. The dynamic range covers 100 photons pulse-1 and is only technically limited by the utilized APD.

J. Synchr. Rad. 23, 1409 (2016)

A. A. Guda, S. A. Guda, M. A. Soldatov, K. A. Lomachenko, A. L. Bugaev, C. Lamberti, W. Gawelda, C. Bressler, G. Smolentsev, A. V. Soldatov, Y. Joly

Finite difference method (FDM) implemented in the FDMNES software [Phys. Rev. B, 2001, 63, 125120] was revised. Thorough analysis shows, that the calculated diagonal in the FDM matrix consists of about 96% zero elements. Thus a sparse solver would be more suitable for the problem instead of traditional Gaussian elimination for the diagonal neighbourhood. We have tried several iterative sparse solvers and the direct one MUMPS solver with METIS ordering turned out to be the best. Compared to the Gaussian solver present method is up to 40 times faster and allows XANES simulations for complex systems already on personal computers. We show applicability of the software for metal-organic [Fe(bpy)₃]²⁺ complex both for low spin and high spin states populated after laser excitation.

J. Phys. Conf. Series 712, 012004 (2016)

K. Haldrup, W. Gawelda, R. Abela, R. Alonso-Mori, U. Bergmann, A. Bordage, M. Cammarata, S. Canton, A. O. Dohn, T. Brandt van Driel, D. M. Fritz, A. Galler, P. Glatzel, T. Harlang, K. S. Kjaer, H. T. Lemke, K. B. Moller, Z. Németh, M. Papai, N. Sas, J. Uhlig, D. Zhu, G. Vankó, V. Sundström, M. M. Nielsen, C. Bressler

In liquid phase chemistry dynamic solute–solvent interactions often govern the path, ultimate outcome, and efficiency of chemical reactions. These steps involve many-body movements on subpicosecond time scales and thus ultrafast structural tools capable of capturing both intramolecular electronic and structural changes, and local solvent structural changes are desired. We have studied the intra- and intermolecular dynamics of a model chromophore, aqueous [Fe(bpy)₃]²⁺, with complementary X-ray tools in a single experiment exploiting intense XFEL radiation as a probe. We monitored the ultrafast structural rearrangement of the solute with X-ray emission spectroscopy, thus establishing time zero for the ensuing X-ray diffuse scattering analysis. The simultaneously recorded X-ray diffuse scattering patterns reveal slower subpicosecond dynamics triggered by the intramolecular structural dynamics of the photoexcited solute. By simultaneous combination of both methods only, we can extract new information about the solvation dynamic processes unfolding during the first picosecond (ps). The measured bulk solvent density increase of 0.2% indicates a dramatic change of the solvation shell around each photoexcited solute, confirming previous ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. Structural changes in the aqueous solvent associated with density and temperature changes occur with ∼1 ps time constants, characteristic for structural dynamics in water. This slower time scale of the solvent response allows us to directly observe the structure of the excited solute molecules well before the solvent contributions become dominant.

J. Phys. Chem. B120, 1158-1168 (2016)

S. Canton, K. Kjaer, G. Vankó, T. van Driel, S. Adachi, A. Bordage, C. Bressler, P. Chabera, M. Christensen, A. Dohn, A. Galler, W. Gawelda, D. Gosztola, K. Haldrup, T. Harlang, Y. Liu, K. Moller, Z. Németh, S. Nozawa, M. Pápai, T. Sato, Ta. Sato, K. Suarez-Alcantara, T. Togashi, K. Tono, J. Uhlig, D. Vithanage, K. Wärnmark, M. Yabashi, J. Zhang, V. Sundström, and M. Nielsen

Ultrafast photoinduced electron transfer preceding energy equilibration still poses many experimental and conceptual challenges to the optimization of photoconversion since an atomic-scale description has so far been beyond reach. Here we combine femtosecond transient optical absorption spectroscopy with ultrafast X-ray emission spectroscopy and diffuse X-ray scattering at the SACLA facility to track the non-equilibrated electronic and structural dynamics within a bimetallic donor–acceptor complex that contains an optically dark centre. Exploiting the 100-fold increase in temporal resolution as compared with storage ring facilities, these measurements constitute the first X-ray-based visualization of a non-equilibrated intramolecular electron transfer process over large interatomic distances. Experimental and theoretical results establish that mediation through electronically excited molecular states is a key mechanistic feature. The present study demonstrates the extensive potential of femtosecond X-ray techniques as diagnostics of non-adiabatic electron transfer processes in synthetic and biological systems, and some directions for future studies, are outlined.

Nat. Commun. 6, 6539 (2015)

S. Guda, A. Guda, M. Soldatov, K. Lomachenko, A. Bugaev, C. Lamberti, W. Gawelda, C. Bressler, G. Smolentsev, A. Soldatov, Y. Joly

Accurate modeling of the X-ray absorption near-edge spectra (XANES) is required to unravel the local structure of metal sites in complex systems and their structural changes upon chemical or light stimuli. Two relevant examples are reported here concerning the following: (i) the effect of molecular adsorption on 3d metals hosted inside metal–organic frameworks and (ii) light induced dynamics of spin crossover in metal–organic complexes. In both cases, the amount of structural models for simulation can reach a hundred, depending on the number of structural parameters. Thus, the choice of an accurate but computationally demanding finite difference method for the ab initio X-ray absorption simulations severely restricts the range of molecular systems that can be analyzed by personal computers. Employing the FDMNES code [ Phys. Rev. B, 2001, 63, 125120] we show that this problem can be handled if a proper diagonalization scheme is applied. Due to the use of dedicated solvers for sparse matrices, the calculation time was reduced by more than 1 order of magnitude compared to the standard Gaussian method, while the amount of required RAM was halved. Ni K-edge XANES simulations performed by the accelerated version of the code allowed analyzing the coordination geometry of CO and NO on the Ni active sites in CPO-27-Ni MOF. The Ni–CO configuration was found to be linear, while Ni–NO was bent by almost 90°. Modeling of the Fe K-edge XANES of photoexcited aqueous [Fe(bpy)₃]²⁺ with a 100 ps delay we identified the Fe–N distance elongation and bipyridine rotation upon transition from the initial low-spin to the final high-spin state. Subsequently, the X-ray absorption spectrum for the intermediate triplet state with expected 100 fs lifetime was theoretically predicted.

J. Chem. Theory Comput. 11(9), 4512-4521 (2015)

A. M. March, T. A. Assefa, C. Bressler, G. Doumy, A. Galler, W. Gawelda, E. P. Kanter, Z. Németh, M. Pápai, S. H. Southworth, L. Young, G. Vankó

X-ray spectroscopies, when combined in laser-pump, X-ray-probe measurement schemes, can be powerful tools for tracking the electronic and geometric structural changes that occur during the course of a photoinitiated chemical reaction. X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is considered an established technique for such measurements, and X-ray emission spectroscopy (XES) of the strongest core-to-core emission lines (Kα and Kβ) is now being utilized. Flux demanding valence-to-core XES promises to be an important addition to the time-resolved spectroscopic toolkit. In this paper we present measurements and density functional theory calculations on laser-excited, solution-phase ferrocyanide that demonstrate the feasibility of valence-to-core XES for time-resolved experiments. We discuss technical improvements that will make valence-to-core XES a practical pump–probe technique.

J. Phys. Chem. C 119 (26), 14571-14578 (2015)

G. Vankó, A. Bordage, M. Pápai, K. Haldrup, P. Glatzel, A. M. March, G. Doumy, A. Britz, A. Galler, T. A. Assefa, D. Cabaret, A. Juhin, T. B. van Driel, K. S. Kjaer, A. O. Dohn, K. B. Moller, H. T. Lemke, E. Gallo, M. Rovezzi, Z. Németh, E. Rozsàlyi, T. Rozgonyi, J. Uhlig, V. Sundström, M. M. Nielsen, L. Young, S. H. Southworth, C. Bressler, W. Gawelda

Theoretical predictions show that depending on the populations of the Fe 3d_xy, 3d_xz, and 3_dyz orbitals two possible quintet states can exist for the high-spin state of the photoswitchable model system [Fe(terpy)₂]²⁺. The differences in the structure and molecular properties of these ⁵B₂ and ⁵E quintets are very small and pose a substantial challenge for experiments to resolve them. Yet for a better understanding of the physics of this system, which can lead to the design of novel molecules with enhanced photoswitching performance, it is vital to determine which high-spin state is reached in the transitions that follow the light excitation. The quintet state can be prepared with a short laser pulse and can be studied with cutting-edge time-resolved X-ray techniques. Here we report on the application of an extended set of X-ray spectroscopy and scattering techniques applied to investigate the quintet state of [Fe(terpy)₂]²⁺ 80 ps after light excitation. High-quality X-ray absorption, nonresonant emission, and resonant emission spectra as well as X-ray diffuse scattering data clearly reflect the formation of the high-spin state of the [Fe(terpy)₂]²⁺ molecule; moreover, extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy resolves the Fe–ligand bond-length variations with unprecedented bond-length accuracy in time-resolved experiments. With ab initio calculations we determine why, in contrast to most related systems, one configurational mode is insufficient for the description of the low-spin (LS)–high-spin (HS) transition. We identify the electronic structure origin of the differences between the two possible quintet modes, and finally, we unambiguously identify the formed quintet state as ⁵E, in agreement with our theoretical expectations.

J. Phys. Chem. C 119 (11), 5888-5902 (2015)

P. Nalbach, A. J. A. Achner, M. Frey, M. Grosser, C. Bressler, M. Thorwart

We study the relaxation dynamics of photoexcited Fe-II complexes dissolved in water and identify the relaxation pathway which the molecular complex follows in presence of a hydration shell of bound water at the interface between the complex and the solvent. Starting from a low-spin state, the photoexcited complex can reach the high-spin state via a cascade of different possible transitions involving electronic as well as vibrational relaxation processes. By numerically exact path integral calculations for the relaxational dynamics of a continuous solvent model, we find that the vibrational life times of the intermittent states are of the order of a few ps. Since the electronic rearrangement in the complex occurs on the time scale of about 100 fs, we find that the complex first rearranges itself in a high-spin and highly excited vibrational state, before it relaxes its energy to the solvent via vibrational relaxation transitions. By this, the relaxation pathway can be clearly identified. We find that the life time of the vibrational states increases with the size of the complex (within a spherical model), but decreases with the thickness of the hydration shell, indicating that the hydration shell acts as an additional source of fluctuations.

J. Chem. Phys. 141, 044304 (2014)

C. Bressler, W. Gawelda, A. Galler, M. M. Nielsen, V. Sundström, G. Doumy, A. M. March, S. H. Southworth, L. Young, G. Vankó

We have studied the photoinduced low spin (LS) to high spin (HS) conversion of aqueous Fe(bpy)3 with pulse-limited time resolution. In a combined setup permitting simultaneous X-ray diffuse scattering (XDS) and spectroscopic measurements at a MHz repetition rate we have unraveled the interplay between intramolecular dynamics and the intermolecular caging solvent response with 100 ps time resolution. On this time scale the ultrafast spin transition including intramolecular geometric structure changes as well as the concomitant bulk solvent heating process due to energy dissipation from the excited HS molecule are long completed. The heating is nevertheless observed to further increase due to the excess energy between HS and LS states released on a subnanosecond time scale. The analysis of the spectroscopic data allows precise determination of the excited population which efficiently reduces the number of free parameters in the XDS analysis, and both combined permit extraction of information about the structural dynamics of the first solvation shell.

Faraday Disc. 2014, Advance article

W. Zhang, R. Alonso-Mori, U. Bergmann, C. Bressler, M. Chollet, A. Galler, W. Gawelda, R. G. Hadt, R. W. Hartsock1, T. Kroll, K. S. Kjær, K. Kubicˇek, H. T. Lemke, H. W. Liang, D. A. Meyer, M. M. Nielsen, C. Purser, J. S. Robinson, et. al

Crucial to many light-driven processes in transition metal complexes is the absorption and dissipation of energy by 3d electrons1, 2, 3, 4. But a detailed understanding of such non-equilibrium excited-state dynamics and their interplay with structural changes is challenging: a multitude of excited states and possible transitions result in phenomena too complex to unravel when faced with the indirect sensitivity of optical spectroscopy to spin dynamics5 and the flux limitations of ultrafast X-ray sources6, 7. Such a situation exists for archetypal polypyridyl iron complexes, such as [Fe(2,2′-bipyridine)3]2+, where the excited-state charge and spin dynamics involved in the transition from a low- to a high-spin state (spin crossover) have long been a source of interest and controversy6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15. Here we demonstrate that femtosecond resolution X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, with its sensitivity to spin state, can elucidate the spin crossover dynamics of [Fe(2,2′-bipyridine)3]2+ on photoinduced metal-to-ligand charge transfer excitation. We are able to track the charge and spin dynamics, and establish the critical role of intermediate spin states in the crossover mechanism. We anticipate that these capabilities will make our method a valuable tool for mapping in unprecedented detail the fundamental electronic excited-state dynamics that underpin many useful light-triggered molecular phenomena involving 3d transition metal complexes.

Nature 509, 345 (2014)

K. Haldrup, G. Vankó, W. Gawelda, A. Galler, G. Doumy, A. M. March, E. P. Kanter, A. Bordage, A. Dohn, T. B. van Driel, K. S. Kjaer, H. T. Lemke, S. E. Canton, J. Uhlig, V. Sundström, L. Young, S. Southworth, M. M. Nielsen, C. Bressler

We have studied the photoinduced low spin (LS) to high spin (HS) conversion of [Fe(bipy)(3)](2+) in aqueous solution. In a laser pump/X-ray probe synchrotron setup permitting simultaneous, time-resolved X-ray diffuse scattering (XDS) and X-ray spectroscopic measurements at a 3.26 MHz repetition rate, we observed the interplay between intramolecular dynamics and the intermolecular caging solvent response with better than 100 ps time resolution. On this time scale, the initial ultrafast spin transition and the associated intramolecular geometric structure changes are long completed, as is the solvent heating due to the initial energy dissipation from the excited HS molecule. Combining information from X-ray emission spectroscopy and scattering, the excitation fraction as well as the temperature and density changes of the solvent can be closely followed on the subnanosecond time scale of the HS lifetime, allowing the detection of an ultrafast change in bulk solvent density. An analysis approach directly utilizing the spectroscopic data in the XDS analysis effectively reduces the number of free parameters, and both combined permit extraction of information about the ultrafast structural dynamics of the caging solvent, in particular, a decrease in the number of water molecules in the first solvation shell is inferred, as predicted by recent theoretical work.

J. Phys. Chem. A116, 9878 (2012)

Murali Krishna Ganesa Subramanian, Roman Brannath, Ralph Welsch, Robin Santra, and Markus Drescher

We demonstrate that an external terahertz (THz) field enables the formation of interference between two distinct Auger pathways leading to the same final ionic state. The kinetic energy of Auger electrons ejected from either of two spin-orbit split one-hole states of magnesium cations is recorded. In the presence of the THz field, a clear oscillatory structure in the Auger spectrum emerges, which we find to be in very good agreement with an analytical model based on perturbation theory. For this interference to occur, the THz field has to chirp the energy of both Auger electrons and photoelectrons simultaneously, in order to create states with indistinguishable quantum properties.

Physical Review A 102, 022807 (2020)

L. Young, K. Ueda, M. Gühr, P. H. Bucksbaum, M. Simon, S. Mukamel, N. Rohringer, K. C. Prince, C. Masciovecchio, M. Meyer, A. Rudenko, D. Rolles, C. Bostedt, M. Fuchs, D. A. Reis, R. Santra, H. Kapteyn, M. Murnane, H. Ibrahim, F. Légaré, et. al.

X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) and table-top sources of x-rays based upon high harmonic generation (HHG) have revolutionized the field of ultrafast x-ray atomic and molecular physics, largely due to an explosive growth in capabilities in the past decade. XFELs now provide unprecedented intensity (1020 W cm−2) of x-rays at wavelengths down to ~1 Ångstrom, and HHG provides unprecedented time resolution (~50 attoseconds) and a correspondingly large coherent bandwidth at longer wavelengths. For context, timescales can be referenced to the Bohr orbital period in hydrogen atom of 150 attoseconds and the hydrogen-molecule vibrational period of 8 femtoseconds; wavelength scales can be referenced to the chemically significant carbon K-edge at a photon energy of ~280 eV (44 Ångstroms) and the bond length in methane of ~1 Ångstrom. With these modern x-ray sources one now has the ability to focus on individual atoms, even when embedded in a complex molecule, and view electronic and nuclear motion on their intrinsic scales (attoseconds and Ångstroms). These sources have enabled coherent diffractive imaging, where one can image non-crystalline objects in three dimensions on ultrafast timescales, potentially with atomic resolution. The unprecedented intensity available with XFELs has opened new fields of multiphoton and nonlinear x-ray physics where behavior of matter under extreme conditions can be explored. The unprecedented time resolution and pulse synchronization provided by HHG sources has kindled fundamental investigations of time delays in photoionization, charge migration in molecules, and dynamics near conical intersections that are foundational to AMO physics and chemistry. This roadmap coincides with the year when three new XFEL facilities, operating at Ångstrom wavelengths, opened for users (European XFEL, Swiss-FEL and PAL-FEL in Korea) almost doubling the present worldwide number of XFELs, and documents the remarkable progress in HHG capabilities since its discovery roughly 30 years ago, showcasing experiments in AMO physics and other applications. Here we capture the perspectives of 17 leading groups and organize the contributions into four categories: ultrafast molecular dynamics, multidimensional x-ray spectroscopies; high-intensity x-ray phenomena; attosecond x-ray science.

J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 51 032003 (2018)

A. Baumann, S. Bazzi, D. Rompotis, O. Schepp, A. Azima, M. Wieland, D. Popova-Gorelova, O. Vendrell, R. Santra, M. Drescher

We present a joint experimental and theoretical study of the VUV-induced dynamics of H2O and its deuterated isotopologues in the first excited state (˜A1B1) utilizing a VUV-pump VUV-probe scheme combined with ab initio classical trajectory calculations. 16-fs VUV pulses centered at 161 nm created by fifth-order harmonic generation are employed for single-shot pump-probe measurements. Combined with a precise determination of the VUV pulses' temporal profile, they provide the necessary temporal resolution to elucidate sub-10-fs dissociation dynamics in the 1+1 photon ionization time window. Ionization with a single VUV photon complements established strong-field ionization schemes by disclosing the molecular dynamics under perturbative conditions. Kinetic isotope effects derived from the pump-probe experiment are found to be in agreement with our by ab initio classical trajectory calculations, taking into account photoionization cross sections for the ground and first excited state of the water cation.

Phys. Rev. A 96, 013428 (2017)

M. Sabbar, H. Timmer, Y. Chen, A. K. Pymer, Z. Loh, S. G. Sayres, S. Pabst, R. Santra, S. R. Leone

Strong-field ionization (SFI) is a key process for accessing real-time quantum dynamics of electrons on the attosecond timescale. The theoretical foundation of SFI was pioneered in the 1960s, and later refined by various analytical models. While asymptotic ionization rates predicted by these models have been tested to be in reasonable agreement for a wide range of laser parameters, predictions for SFI on the sub-laser-cycle timescale are either beyond the scope of the models or show strong qualitative deviations from full quantum-mechanical simulations. Here, using the unprecedented state specificity of attosecond transient absorption spectroscopy, we follow the real-time SFI process of the two valence spin–orbit states of xenon. The results reveal that the irreversible tunnelling contribution is accompanied by a reversible electronic population that exhibits an observable spin–orbit-dependent phase delay. A detailed theoretical analysis attributes this observation to transient ground-state polarization, an unexpected facet of SFI that cannot be captured by existing analytical models that focus exclusively on the production of asymptotic electron/ion yields.

Nature Physics (2017)

A. Karamatskou and R. Santra

The 5p two-photon ionization cross section of xenon in the photon-energy range below the one-photon ionization threshold is calculated within the time-dependent configuration-interaction-singles (TDCIS) method. The TDCIS calculations are compared to random-phase-approximation calculations [Wendin et al., J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 4, 833 (1987)] and are found to reproduce the energy positions of the intermediate Rydberg states reasonably well. The effect of interchannel coupling is also investigated and found to change the cross section of the 5p shell only slightly compared to the intrachannel case.

Phys. Rev. A 95, 013415 (2017)

S. Pabst, A. Sytcheva, O. Geffert, R. Santra

We investigate the behavior of several spatial grid methods and complex absorbers for strong-field and attosecond scenarios when using the time-dependent configuration-interaction singles method to solve the multi-electron time-dependent Schrödinger equation for atoms. We compare the pseudospectral grid, finite-element, and finite-element-discrete-variable-representation (DVR) methods with each other and discuss their advantages and disadvantages. Additionally, we study the performances of complex absorbing potential (CAP) and smooth exterior complex scaling (SES) to absorb the outgoing electron. We find that SES performs generally better than CAP for calculating high-harmonic generation spectra and XUV photoelectron spectra. In both of these cases, the DVR and even more the FEM grid representations show more reliable results—especially when using SES. Both absorbers show drawbacks when calculating photoelectron spectra in the strong-field regime.

Phys. Rev. A 94, 033421 (2016)

R. Esteban Goetz, M. Merkel, A. Karamatskou, R. Santra, C. P. Koch

Photoionization with attosecond pulses populates hole states in the photoion. Superpositions of hole states represent ideal candidates for time-dependent spectroscopy, for example via pump-probe studies. The challenge consists in identifying pulses that create coherent superpositions of hole states while satisfying practical constraints. Here, we employ quantum optimal control to maximize the degree of coherence between these hole states. To this end, we introduce a derivative-free optimization method with sequential parametrization update (SPA optimization). We demonstrate the versatility and computational efficiency of SPA optimization for photoionization in argon by maximizing the coherence between the 3s and 3p0 hole states using shaped attosecond pulses. We show that it is possible to maximize the hole coherence while simultaneously prescribing the ratio of the final hole state populations.

Phys. Rev. A 94, 023420 (2016)

R. E. Goetz, A. Karamatskou, R. Santra, C. P. Koch

Photoelectron spectra and photoelectron angular distributions obtained in photoionization reveal important information on, e.g., charge transfer or hole coherence in the parent ion. Here we show that optimal control of the underlying quantum dynamics can be used to enhance desired features in the photoelectron spectra and angular distributions. To this end, we combine Krotov's method for optimal control theory with the time-dependent configuration interaction singles formalism and a splitting approach to calculate photoelectron spectra and angular distributions. The optimization target can account for specific desired properties in the photoelectron angular distribution alone, in the photoelectron spectrum, or in both. We demonstrate the method for hydrogen and then apply it to argon under strong XUV radiation, maximizing the difference of emission into the upper and lower hemispheres, in order to realize directed electron emission in the XUV regime.

Phys. Rev. A 93, 013413 (2016)

T. Mazza, A. Karamatskou, M. Ilchen, S. Bakhtiarzadeh, A. J. Rafipoor, P. O’Keeffe, T. J. Kelly, N. Walsh, J. T. Costello, M. Meyer, R. Santra

Collective behaviour is a characteristic feature in many-body systems, important for developments in fields such as magnetism, superconductivity, photonics and electronics. Recently, there has been increasing interest in the optically nonlinear response of collective excitations. Here we demonstrate how the nonlinear interaction of a many-body system with intense XUV radiation can be used as an effective probe for characterizing otherwise unresolved features of its collective response. Resonant photoionization of atomic xenon was chosen as a case study. The excellent agreement between experiment and theory strongly supports the prediction that two distinct poles underlie the giant dipole resonance. Our results pave the way towards a deeper understanding of collective behaviour in atoms, molecules and solid-state systems using nonlinear spectroscopic techniques enabled by modern short-wavelength light sources.

Nature Communications 6, Article no 6799 (2015)

M. Hollstein and D. Pfannkuche

The importance of multielectron dynamics during the tunneling ionization of a correlated quantum system is investigated. By comparison of the solution of the time-dependent Schrödinger equation with the time-dependent configuration-interaction singles approach, we demonstrate the importance of a multielectron description of the tunneling ionization process especially for weakly confined quantum systems. Within this context, we observe that adiabatic driving by an intense light field can even enhance the correlations between still trapped electrons.

Phys. Rev. A 92, 053421 (2015)

M. Tilley, A. Karamatskou, R. Santra

We investigate the multi-photon process of above-threshold ionization for the light elements hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen in the hard x-ray regime. Numerical challenges are discussed and by comparing Hartree–Fock–Slater calculations with configuration–interaction–singles results we justify the mean-field potential approach in this regime. We present a theoretical prediction of two-photon above-threshold-ionization cross sections for the mentioned elements. Moreover, we study how the importance of above-threshold ionization varies with intensity. We find that for carbon, at x-ray intensities around ${{10}^{23}}\ {\rm W}\;{\rm c}{{{\rm m}}^{-2}}$, two-photon above-threshold ionization of the K-shell electrons is as probable as one-photon ionization of the L-shell electrons.

J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 48 12400

Yi-Jen Chen (陳怡蓁), Stefan Pabst, Antonia Karamatskou, Robin Santra

We present a detailed theoretical characterization of the two fundamental collective resonances underlying the xenon giant dipole resonance (GDR). This is achieved consistently by two complementary methods implemented within the framework of the configuration-interaction singles (CIS) theory. The first method accesses the resonance states by diagonalizing the many-electron Hamiltonian using the smooth exterior complex scaling technique. The second method involves a different application of the Gabor analysis to wave-packet dynamics. We identify one resonance at an excitation energy of 74 eV with a lifetime of 27 as and the second at 107eV with a lifetime of 11as. Our work provides a deeper understanding of the nature of the resonances associated with the GDR: a group of close-lying intrachannel resonances splits into two far-separated resonances through interchannel couplings involving the 4d electrons. The CIS approach allows a transparent interpretation of the two resonances as new collective modes. Due to the strong entanglement between the excited electron and the ionic core, the resonance wave functions are not dominated by any single particle-hole state. This gives rise to plasma-like collective oscillations of the 4d shell as a whole.

Phys. Rev. A 91, 032503 (2015)

S. Pabst, R. Santra

Spin–orbit interactions lead to small energy gaps between the outermost p1/2 and p3/2 shells of noble gas atoms. Strong-field pulses tunnel-ionize an electron out of either shell resulting in spin–orbit-driven hole motion. These hole dynamics affect the high-harmonic generation (HHG) yield. However, the spectral shape as well as the angular distribution of the HHG emission is not influenced by spin–orbit coupling. We demonstrate the spin–orbit effect on atomic krypton by solving the multi-electron Schrödinger equation with the time-dependent configuration-interaction singles approach. We also provide pulse parameters where this effect can be identified in experiments through an enhancement in the HHG yield as the wavelength of the strong-field pulse increases.

J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 47 124026 (2014)

E. Heinrich-Josties, S. Pabst, R. Santra

We study the state-resolved production of neon ion after resonant photoionization of Ne via the 2s-3p Fano resonance. We find that by tuning the photon energy across the Fano resonance, a surprisingly high control over the alignment of the final 2p hole along the polarization direction can be achieved. In this way, hole alignments can be created that are otherwise very hard to achieve. The mechanism responsible for this hole alignment is the destructive interference of the direct and indirect (via the autoionizing 2s−13p state) ionization pathways of 2p. By changing the photon energy, the strength of the interference varies and 2p hole alignments with ratios up to 19:1 between 2p0 and 2p±1 holes can be created—an effect normally only encountered in tunnel ionization using strong-field ir pulses. The inclusion of spin-orbit interaction does not change the qualitative feature and leads only to a reduction in the alignment by 2/3. Our study is based on a time-dependent configuration-interaction singles approach, which solves the multichannel time-dependent Schrödinger equation.

Phys. Rev. A 89, 043415 (2014)

A. Karamatskou, S. Pabst, Y.-J. Chen, R. Santra

We present an extension of the time-dependent configuration-interaction singles (TDCIS) method to the computation of the electron kinetic-energy spectrum in photoionization processes. Especially for strong and long ionizing light pulses, the detection of the photoelectron poses a computational challenge because propagating the outgoing photoelectron wave packet requires large grid sizes. Two different methods that allow for the extraction of the asymptotic photoelectron momentum are compared regarding their methodological and computational performance. The first method follows the scheme of Tong et al. [X. M. Tong, K. Hino, and N. Toshima, Phys. Rev. A 74, 031405(R) (2006)], where the photoelectron wave function is absorbed by a real splitting function. The second method following that presented by Tao and Scrinzi [L. Tao and A. Scrinzi, New J. Phys. 14, 013021 (2012)], measures the flux of the electron wave packet through a surface at a fixed radius. With both methods the full angle- and energy-resolved photoelectron spectrum is obtained. Combined with the TDCIS scheme, it is possible to analyze the dynamics of the outgoing electron in a channel-resolved way and, additionally, to study the dynamics of the bound electrons in the parent ion. As an application, one-photon and above-threshold ionization of argon following strong XUV irradiation are studied via energy- and angle-resolved photoelectron spectra.

Phys. Rev. A 89, 033415 (2014)

D. Krebs, S. Pabst, R. Santra

Atoms constitute relatively simple many-body systems, making them suitable objects for developing an understanding of basic aspects of many-body physics. Photoabsorption spectroscopy is a prominent method to study the electronic structure of atoms and the inherent many-body interactions. In this article, the impact of many-body effects on well-known spectroscopic features, such as Rydberg series, Fano resonances, Cooper minima, and giant resonances, is studied and related many-body phenomena in other fields are outlined. To calculate photoabsorption cross sections, the time-dependent configuration interaction singles (TDCIS) model is employed. The conceptual clearness of TDCIS in combination with the compactness of atomic systems allows for a pedagogical introduction to many-body phenomena.

Am. J. Phys. 82, 113 (2014)

S. Pabst, R. Santra

We resolve an open question about the origin of the giant enhancement in the high-harmonic generation spectrum of atomic xenon around 100 eV. By solving the many-body time-dependent Schrödinger equation with all 4d, 5s, and 5p orbitals active, we truly demonstrate the enhancement results from the collective many-body excitation induced by the returning photoelectron via two-body interchannel interactions. Without the many-body interactions, which promote a 4d electron into the 5p vacancy created by strong-field ionization, no collective excitation and no enhancement in the high-harmonic generation spectrum exist.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 111, 233005 (2013)

S. Pabst

Time-resolved investigations of ultrafast electronic and molecular dynamics were not possible until recently. The typical time scale of these processes is in the picosecond to attosecond realm. The tremendous technological progress in recent years made it possible to generate ultrashort pulses, which can be used to trigger, to watch, and to control atomic and molecular motion. This tutorial focuses on experimental and theoretical advances which are used to study the dynamics of electrons and molecules in the presence of ultrashort pulses. In the first part, the rotational dynamics of molecules, which happens on picosecond and femtosecond time scales, is reviewed. Well-aligned molecules are particularly suitable for angle-dependent investigations like x-ray diffraction or strong-field ionization experiments. In the second part, the ionization dynamics of atoms is studied. The characteristic time scale lies, here, in the attosecond to few-femtosecond regime. Although a one-particle picture has been successfully applied to many processes, many-body effects do constantly occur. After a broad overview of the main mechanisms and the most common tools in attosecond physics, examples of many-body dynamics in the attosecond world (e.g., in high-harmonic generation and attosecond transient absorption spectroscopy) are discussed.

Eur. Phys. J. Special Topics 221, 1-71 (2013)

A. Karamatskou, S. Pabst, R. Santra

If the photon energy is much less than the electron binding energy, ionization of an atom by a strong optical field is often described in terms of electron tunneling through the potential barrier resulting from the superposition of the atomic potential and the potential associated with the instantaneous electric component of the optical field. In the strict tunneling regime, the electron response to the optical field is said to be adiabatic, and nonadiabatic effects are assumed to be negligible. Here, we investigate to what degree this terminology is consistent with a language based on the so-called adiabatic representation. This representation is commonly used in various fields of physics. For electronically bound states, the adiabatic representation yields discrete potential-energy curves that are connected by nonadiabatic transitions. When applying the adiabatic representation to optical strong-field ionization, a conceptual challenge is that the eigenstates of the instantaneous Hamiltonian form a continuum; i.e., there are no discrete adiabatic states. This difficulty can be overcome by applying an analytic-continuation technique. In this way, we obtain a rigorous classification of adiabatic states and a clear characterization of (non)adiabatic and (non)diabatic ionization dynamics. Moreover, we distinguish two different regimes within tunneling ionization and explain the dependence of the ionization probability on the pulse envelope.

Phys. Rev. A 87, 043422 (2013)

A. Wirth, R. Santra, E. Goulielmakis

The chemical properties of atoms, molecules and of more complex systems such as clusters, nanoparticles or condensed matter systems are determined by valence electrons. Real-time control of these properties requires the capability of tracing as well as of driving valence electrons on their native temporal scale of motion, that is, within tens to thousands of attoseconds. Here we detail the technique of attosecond transient absorption spectroscopy. It combines the extreme sensitivity of core-level spectroscopy with the unprecedented temporal resolution offered by the tools of attosecond technology. We use the technique to demonstrate real-time tracing and complete characterization of coherent electron motion triggered by single, double or multiple ionization of atoms exposed to intense, few-cycle pulses. Our work opens the door to high fidelity, time-domain studies and control of electron dynamics in the microcosm.

Chemical Physics 414 (2013) 149–159

S. Pabst, A. Sytcheva, A. Moulet, A. Wirth, E. Goulielmakis, R. Santra

We present a fully ab initio calculations for attosecond transient absorption spectroscopy of atomic krypton with overlapping pump and probe pulses. Within the time-dependent configuration interaction singles (TDCIS) approach, we describe the pump step (strong-field ionization using a near-infrared pulse) as well as the probe step (resonant electron excitation using an extreme-ultraviolet pulse) from first principles. We extend our TDCIS model and account for the spin-orbit splitting of the occupied orbitals. We discuss the spectral features seen in a recent attosecond transient absorption experiment [ A. Wirth et al. Science 334 195 (2011)]. Our results support the concept that the transient absorption signal can be directly related to the instantaneous hole population even during the ionizing pump pulse. Furthermore, we find strong deformations in the absorption lines when the overlap of pump and probe pulses is maximum. These deformations can be described by relative phase shifts in the oscillating ionic dipole. We discuss possible mechanisms contributing to these phase shifts. Our finding suggests that the nonperturbative laser dressing of the entire N-electron wave function is the main contributor.

Phys. Rev. A 86, 063411 (2012)

S. Pabst, L. Greenman, D. A. Mazziotti, R. Santra

We investigate the relevance of multiple-orbital and multipole effects during high-harmonic generation (HHG). The time-dependent configuration interaction singles (TDCIS) approach is used to study the impact of the detailed description of the residual electron-ion interaction on the HHG spectrum. We find that the shape and position of the Cooper minimum in the HHG spectrum of argon changes significantly whether or not interchannel interactions are taken into account. The HHG yield can be underestimated by up to 2 orders of magnitude in the energy region of 30–50 eV. We show that the argument of low ionization probability is not sufficient to justify ignoring multiple-orbital contributions. Additionally, we find the HHG yield is sensitive to the nonspherical multipole character of the electron-ion interaction.

Phys. Rev. A 85, 023411 (2012)

H. P. Zahn, V. P. Singh, M. N. Kosch, L. Asteria, L. Freystatzky, K. Sengstock, L. Mathey, and C. Weitenberg

Driving a many-body system out of equilibrium induces phenomena such as the emergence and decay of transient states, which can manifest itself as pattern and domain formation. The understanding of these phenomena expands the scope of established thermodynamics into the out-of-equilibrium domain. Here, we experimentally and theoretically study the out-of-equilibrium dynamics of a bosonic lattice model subjected to a strong dc field, realized as ultracold atoms in a strongly tilted triangular optical lattice. We observe the emergence of pronounced density-wave patterns—which spontaneously break the underlying lattice symmetry—using a novel single-shot imaging technique with two-dimensional single-site resolution in three-dimensional systems, which also resolves the domain structure. Our study suggests that the short-time dynamics arises from resonant pair tunneling processes within an effective description of the tilted Hubbard model. More broadly, we establish the far out-of-equilibrium regime of lattice models subjected to a strong dc field, as an exemplary and paradigmatic scenario for transient pattern formation.

Phys. Rev. X 12, 021014 (2022)

Christof Weitenberg & Juliette Simonet

Floquet engineering is the concept of tailoring a system by a periodic drive, and it is increasingly employed in many areas of physics. Ultracold atoms in optical lattices offer a particularly large toolbox to design a variety of driving schemes. A strong motivation for developing these methods is the prospect to study the interplay between topology and interactions in a system where both ingredients are fully tunable. We review the recent successes of Floquet engineering in realizing new classes of Hamiltonians in quantum gases, such as Hamiltonians including artificial gauge fields, topological band structures and density-dependent tunnelling. The creation of periodically driven systems also gives rise to phenomena without static counterparts such as anomalous Floquet topological insulators. We discuss the challenges facing the field, particularly the control of heating mechanisms, which currently limit the preparation of many-body phases, as well as the potential future developments as these obstacles are overcome.

Nat. Phys. (2021)

Benno S. Rem, Niklas Käming, Matthias Tarnowski, Luca Asteria, Nick Fläschner, Christoph Becker, Klaus Sengstock, and Christof Weitenberg

Nature Physics 15, 917–920 (2019)

M. Pyzh, S. Krönke, C. Weitenberg, P. Schmelcher

Quantum gas microscopes, which image the atomic occupations in an optical lattice, have opened a new avenue to the exploration of many-body lattice systems. Imaging trapped systems after freezing the density distribution by ramping up a pinning lattice leads, however, to a distortion of the original density distribution, especially when its structures are on the scale of the pinning lattice spacing. We show that this dynamics can be described by a filter, which we call in analogy to classical optics a quantum point spread function. Using a machine learning approach, we demonstrate via several experimentally relevant setups that a suitable deconvolution allows for the reconstruction of the original density distribution. These findings are both of fundamental interest for the theory of imaging and of immediate importance for current quantum gas experiments.

New J. Phys. 21, 053013 (2019)

M. Pyzh, S. Krönke, C. Weitenberg, P. Schmelcher

We investigate a few-body mixture of two bosonic components, each consisting of two particles confined in a quasi one-dimensional harmonic trap. By means of exact diagonalization with a correlated basis approach we obtain the low-energy spectrum and eigenstates for the whole range of repulsive intra- and inter-component interaction strengths. We analyse the eigenvalues as a function of the inter-component coupling, covering hereby all the limiting regimes, and characterize the behaviour in-between these regimes by exploiting the symmetries of the Hamiltonian. Provided with this knowledge we study the breathing dynamics in the linear-response regime by slightly quenching the trap frequency symmetrically for both components. Depending on the choice of interactions strengths, we identify 1 to 3 monopole modes besides the breathing mode of the centre of mass coordinate. For the uncoupled mixture each monopole mode corresponds to the breathing oscillation of a specific relative coordinate. Increasing the inter-component coupling first leads to multi-mode oscillations in each relative coordinate, which turn into single-mode oscillations of the same frequency in the composite-fermionization regime.

New J. Phys. 20, 015006 (2018)

Singh V. P., Weitenberg C., Dalibard J., Mathey L.

We investigate the superfluid behavior of a two-dimensional (2D) Bose gas of ⁸⁷Rb atoms using classical field dynamics. In the experiment by R. Desbuquois et al. [Nat. Phys. 8, 645 (2012)], a 2D quasicondensate in a trap is stirred with a blue-detuned laser beam along a circular path around the trap center. Here, we study this experiment from a theoretical perspective. The heating induced by stirring increases rapidly above a velocity vc, which we define as the critical velocity. We identify the superfluid, the crossover, and the thermal regime by a finite, a sharply decreasing, and a vanishing critical velocity, respectively. We demonstrate that the onset of heating occurs due to the creation of vortex-antivortex pairs. A direct comparison of our numerical results to the experimental ones shows a good agreement, if a systematic shift of the critical phase-space density is included. We relate this shift to the absence of thermal equilibrium between the condensate and the thermal wings, which were used in the experiment to extract the temperature. We expand on this observation by studying the full relaxation dynamics between the condensate and the thermal cloud.

Phys. Rev. A 95, 043631 (2017)

M. Lahrz, C. Weitenberg, L. Mathey

Supersymmetric systems derive their properties from conserved supercharges which form a supersymmetric algebra. These systems naturally factorize into two subsystems, which, when considered as individual systems, have essentially the same eigenenergies, and their eigenstates can be mapped onto each other. We propose a Mach-Zehnder interference experiment to detect supersymmetry in quantum-mechanical systems, which can be realized with current technology. To demonstrate this interferometric technique, we first propose a one-dimensional ultracold-atom setup to realize a pair of supersymmetric systems. Here, a single-atom wave packet evolves in a superposition of the subsystems and gives an interference contrast that is sharply peaked if the subsystems form a supersymmetric pair. Second, we propose a two-dimensional setup that implements supersymmetric dynamics in a synthetic gauge field.

Phys. Rev. A 96, 043624 (2017)

M. Tarnowski, M. Nuske, N. Fläschner, B. Rem, D. Vogel, L. Freystatzky, K. Sengstock, L. Mathey, C. Weitenberg

Topological defects in Bloch bands, such as Dirac points in graphene, and their resulting Berry phases play an important role for the electronic dynamics in solid state crystals. Such defects can arise in systems with a two-atomic basis due to the momentum-dependent coupling of the two sublattice states, which gives rise to a pseudo-spin texture. The topological defects appear as vortices in the azimuthal phase of this pseudo-spin texture. Here, we demonstrate a complete measurement of the azimuthal phase in a hexagonal optical lattice
employing a versatile method based on time-of-flight imaging after off-resonant lattice modulation. Furthermore we map out the merging transition of the two Dirac points induced by beam imbalance. Our work paves the way to accessing geometric properties in general multi-band systems also with spin-orbit coupling and interactions.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 240403 (2017)
https://arxiv.org/abs/1703.02813

D.-S. Lühmann, C. Weitenberg, K. Sengstock

In the recent years, ultracold atoms in optical lattices have proven their great value as quantum simulators for studying strongly-correlated phases and complex phenomena in solid-state systems. Here we reveal their potential as quantum simulators for molecular physics and propose a technique to image the three-dimensional molecular orbitals with high resolution. The outstanding tunability of ultracold atoms in terms of potential and interaction offer fully-adjustable model systems for gaining deep insight into the electronic structure of molecules. We study the orbitals of an artificial benzene molecule and discuss the effect of tunable interactions in its conjugated pi electron system with special regard to localization and spin order. The dynamical timescale of ultracold atom simulators are on the order milliseconds which allow for the time-resolved monitoring of a broad range of dynamical processes. As an example, we compute the hole dynamics in the conjugated pi system of the artificial benzene molecule.

Phys. Rev. X 5, 031016 (2015)

Schäfer, C., Flick, J., Ronca, E. et al.

Strong light–matter interaction in cavity environments is emerging as a promising approach to control chemical reactions in a non-intrusive and efficient manner. The underlying mechanism that distinguishes between steering, accelerating, or decelerating a chemical reaction has, however, remained unclear, hampering progress in this frontier area of research. We leverage quantum-electrodynamical density-functional theory to unveil the microscopic mechanism behind the experimentally observed reduced reaction rate under cavity induced resonant vibrational strong light-matter coupling. We observe multiple resonances and obtain the thus far theoretically elusive but experimentally critical resonant feature for a single strongly coupled molecule undergoing the reaction. While we describe only a single mode and do not explicitly account for collective coupling or intermolecular interactions, the qualitative agreement with experimental measurements suggests that our conclusions can be largely abstracted towards the experimental realization. Specifically, we find that the cavity mode acts as mediator between different vibrational modes. In effect, vibrational energy localized in single bonds that are critical for the reaction is redistributed differently which ultimately inhibits the reaction.

Nat Commun 13, 7817 (2022)

Tancogne-Dejean, N., Eich, F.G. & Rubio, A.

In this work, we performed extensive first-principles simulations of high-harmonic generation in the topological Diract semimetal Na3Bi using a first-principles time-dependent density functional theory framework, focusing on the effect of spin-orbit coupling (SOC) on the harmonic response. We also derived an analytical model describing the microscopic mechanism of strong-field dynamics in presence of spin-orbit coupling, starting from a locally U(1) × SU(2) gauge-invariant Hamiltonian. Our results reveal that SOC: (i) affects the strong-field excitation of carriers to the conduction bands by modifying the bandstructure of Na3Bi, (ii) makes each spin channel reacts differently to the driven laser by modifying the electron velocity (iii) changes the emission timing of the emitted harmonics. Moreover, we show that the SOC affects the harmonic emission by directly coupling the charge current to the spin currents, paving the way to the high-harmonic spectroscopy of spin currents in solids.

npj Comput Mater 8, 145 (2022)

Zhou, L., Huang, J., Windgaetter, L. et al.

Complex correlated states emerging from many-body interactions between quasiparticles (electrons, excitons and phonons) are at the core of condensed matter physics and material science. In low-dimensional materials, quantum confinement affects the electronic, and subsequently, optical properties for these correlated states. Here, by combining photoluminescence, optical reflection measurements and ab initio theoretical calculations, we demonstrate an unconventional excitonic state and its bound phonon sideband in layered silicon diphosphide (SiP₂), where the bound electron–hole pair is composed of electrons confined within one-dimensional phosphorus–phosphorus chains and holes extended in two-dimensional SiP₂ layers. The excitonic state and emergent phonon sideband show linear dichroism and large energy redshifts with increasing temperature. Our ab initio many-body calculations confirm that the observed phonon sideband results from the correlated interaction between excitons and optical phonons. With these results, we propose layered SiP₂ as a platform for the study of excitonic physics and many-particle effects.

Nat. Mater. 21, 773–778 (2022)

Ofer Neufeld, Jin Zhang, Umberto De Giovannini, and Angel Rubio

High harmonic generation (HHG) has recently been established as a powerful method for probing ultrafast electron dynamics in solids. However, it remains unknown if HHG can be similarly applied for probing lattice distortions such as phonons. Specifically, it is unclear if the extreme nonlinearity of HHG can contribute to enhanced temporal resolution or sensitivity for probing lattice dynamics (compared to other, perturbative, methods). Here, we theoretically explore HHG in solids with active phonons. We present a pump-probe and multidimensional spectroscopy approach that relies on carrier-envelope-phase-sensitivity, in which HHG is highly sensitive for phonon dynamics. Strikingly, the predicted temporal resolution is ∼1 femtosecond, much below the probe pulse duration, owing to the subcycle nature of the approach.

PNAS, 119 (25) e2204219119 (2022)

Erik P Månsson, Simone Latini, Fabio Covito, Vincent Wanie, Mara Galli, Enrico Perfetto, Gianluca Stefanucci, Umberto De Giovannini, Mattea C Castrovilli, Andrea Trabattoni, Fabio Frassetto, Luca Poletto, Jason B Greenwood, François Légaré, Mauro Nisoli, Angel Rubio, Francesca Calegari

The dynamics of biologically relevant molecules exposed to ionizing radiation contains many facets and spans several orders of magnitude in time and energy. In the extreme ultraviolet (XUV) spectral range, multi-electronic phenomena and bands of correlated states with inner-valence holes must be accounted for in addition to a plethora of vibrational modes and available dissociation channels. The ability to track changes in charge density and bond length during ultrafast reactions is an important endeavor toward more general abilities to simulate and control photochemical processes, possibly inspired by those that have evolved biologically. By using attosecond XUV pulses extending up to 35 eV and few-femtosecond near-infrared pulses, we have previously time-resolved correlated electronic dynamics and charge migration occurring in the biologically relevant molecule adenine after XUV-induced sudden ionization. Here, using additional experimental data, we comprehensively report on both electronic and vibrational dynamics of this nucleobase in an energy range little explored to date with high temporal resolution. The time-dependent yields of parent and fragment ions in the mass spectra are analyzed to extract exponential time constants and oscillation periods. Together with time-dependent density functional theory and ab-initio Green’s function methods, we identify different vibrational and electronic processes. Beyond providing further insights into the XUV-induced dynamics of an important nucleobase, our work demonstrates that yields of specific dissociation outcomes can be influenced by sufficiently well-timed ultrashort pulses, therefore providing a new route for the control of the multi-electronic and dissociative dynamics of a DNA building block.

J. Phys. Photonics 4 034003 (2022)

Schäfer, C., Buchholz, F., Penz, M., Ruggenthaler, M., & Rubio, A.

Strong light–matter coupling provides a promising path for the control of quantum matter where the latter is routinely described from first principles. However, combining the quantized nature of light with this ab initio tool set is challenging and merely developing as the coupled light–matter Hilbert space is conceptually different and computational cost quickly becomes overwhelming. In this work, we provide a nonperturbative photon-free formulation of quantum electrodynamics (QED) in the long-wavelength limit, which is formulated solely on the matter Hilbert space and can serve as an accurate starting point for such ab initio methods. The present formulation is an extension of quantum mechanics that recovers the exact results of QED for the zero- and infinite-coupling limit and the infinite-frequency as well as the homogeneous limit, and we can constructively increase its accuracy. We show how this formulation can be used to devise approximations for quantum-electrodynamical density-functional theory (QEDFT), which in turn also allows us to extend the ansatz to the full minimal-coupling problem and to nonadiabatic situations. Finally, we provide a simple local density–type functional that takes the strong coupling to the transverse photon degrees of freedom into account and includes the correct frequency and polarization dependence. This QEDFT functional accounts for the quantized nature of light while remaining computationally simple enough to allow its application to a large range of systems. All approximations allow the seamless application to periodic systems.

PNAS, 118 (41) e2110464118 (2021)

Xian, L. D., Fischer, A., Claassen, M., Zhang, J., Rubio, A., & Kennes, D. M.

Twisting two adjacent layers of van der Waals materials with respect to each other can lead to flat two-dimensional electronic bands which enables a wealth of physical phenomena. Here, we generalize this concept of so-called moiré flat bands to engineer flat bands in all three spatial dimensions controlled by the twist angle. The basic concept is to stack the material such that the large spatial moiré interference patterns are spatially shifted from one twisted layer to the next. We exemplify the general concept by considering graphitic systems, boron nitride, and WSe₂, but the approach is applicable to any two-dimensional van der Waals material. For hexagonal boron nitride, we develop an ab initio fitted tight binding model that captures the corresponding three-dimensional low-energy electronic structure. We outline that interesting three-dimensional correlated phases of matter can be induced and controlled following this route, including quantum magnets and unconventional superconducting states.

Nano Lett., 21, 18, 7519–7526 (2021)

Xian, L. D., Claassen, M., Kiese, D., Scherer, M. M., Trebst, S., Kennes, D. M., & Rubio, A.

Recently, the twist angle between adjacent sheets of stacked van der Waals materials emerged as a new knob to engineer correlated states of matter in two-dimensional heterostructures in a controlled manner, giving rise to emergent phenomena such as superconductivity or correlated insulating states. Here, we use an ab initio based approach to characterize the electronic properties of twisted bilayer MoS₂. We report that, in marked contrast to twisted bilayer graphene, slightly hole-doped MoS₂ realizes a strongly asymmetric p_x-p_y Hubbard model on the honeycomb lattice, with two almost entirely dispersionless bands emerging due to destructive interference. The origin of these dispersionless bands, is similar to that of the flat bands in the prototypical Lieb or Kagome lattices and co-exists with the general band flattening at small twist angle due to the moiré interference. We study the collective behavior of twisted bilayer MoS₂ in the presence of interactions, and characterize an array of different magnetic and orbitally-ordered correlated phases, which may be susceptible to quantum fluctuations giving rise to exotic, purely quantum, states of matter.

Nat Commun 12, 5644 (2021)

Theophilou, I., Reinhard, T., Rubio, A., & Ruggenthaler, M.

Recently a novel approach to find approximate exchange–correlation functionals in density-functional theory was presented (Mordovina et al 2019 J. Chem. Theory Comput. 15 5209), which relies on approximations to the interacting wave function using density-matrix embedding theory (DMET). This approximate interacting wave function is constructed by using a projection determined by an iterative procedure that makes parts of the reduced density matrix of an auxiliary system the same as the approximate interacting density matrix. If only the diagonal of both systems are connected this leads to an approximation of the interacting-to-non-interacting mapping of the Kohn–Sham approach to density-functional theory. Yet other choices are possible and allow to connect DMET with other density-functional theories such as kinetic-energy density functional theory or reduced density-matrix functional theory. In this work we give a detailed review of the basics of the DMET procedure from a density-functional perspective and show how both approaches can be used to supplement each other. We do not present a specific realization of combining density-functional methods with DMET but rather provide common grounds to facilitate future developments that encompass both approaches. We do so explicitly for the case of a one-dimensional lattice system, as this is the simplest setting where we can apply DMET and the one that was originally presented. Among others we highlight how the mappings of density-functional theories can be used to identify uniquely defined auxiliary systems and projections in DMET and how to construct approximations for different density-functional theories using DMET inspired projections. Such alternative approximation strategies become especially important for density-functional theories that are based on non-linearly coupled observables such as kinetic-energy density-functional theory, where the Kohn–Sham fields are no longer obtainable by functional differentiation of an energy expression, or for reduced density-matrix functional theories, where a straightforward Kohn–Sham construction is not feasible.

Electron. Struct. 3 035001 (2021)

Neufeld, O., Tancogne-Dejean, N., de Giovannini, U., Hübener, H., & Rubio, A.

We predict the generation of bulk photocurrents in materials driven by bichromatic fields that are circularly polarized and corotating. The nonlinear photocurrents have a fully controllable directionality and amplitude without requiring carrier-envelope-phase stabilization or few-cycle pulses, and can be generated with photon energies much smaller than the band gap (reducing heating in the photoconversion process). We demonstrate with ab initio calculations that the photocurrent generation mechanism is universal and arises in gaped materials (Si, diamond, MgO, hBN), in semimetals (graphene), and in two- and three-dimensional systems. Photocurrents are shown to rely on sub-laser-cycle asymmetries in the nonlinear response that build-up coherently from cycle to cycle as the conduction band is populated. Importantly, the photocurrents are always transverse to the major axis of the co-circular lasers regardless of the material’s structure and orientation (analogously to a Hall current), which we find originates from a generalized time-reversal symmetry in the driven system. At high laser powers (∼10¹³  W/cm²) this symmetry can be spontaneously broken by vast electronic excitations, which is accompanied by an onset of carrier-envelope-phase sensitivity and ultrafast many-body effects. Our results are directly applicable for efficient light-driven control of electronics, and for enhancing sub-band-gap bulk photogalvanic effects.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 126601 (2021)

Viñas Boström, E., Parvini, T. S., McIver, J. W., Rubio, A., Kusminskiy, S. V., & Sentef, M. A.

We introduce the magnon circular photogalvanic effect enabled by two-magnon Raman scattering. This provides an all-optical pathway to the generation of directed magnon currents with circularly polarized light in honeycomb antiferromagnetic insulators. The effect is the leading order contribution to magnon photocurrent generation via optical fields. Control of the magnon current by the polarization and angle of incidence of the laser is demonstrated. Experimental detection by sizable inverse spin Hall voltages in platinum contacts is proposed.

Phys. Rev. B 104, L100404 (2021)

Lloyd-Hughes, J., Oppeneer, P. M., Pereira dos Santos, T., Schleife, A., Meng, S., Sentef, M. A., Ruggenthaler, M., Rubio, A., Radu, I., Murnane, M., Shi, X., Kapteyn, H., Stadtmüller, B., Dani, K. M., da Jornada, F. H., Prinz, E., Aeschlimann, M., Milot, R. L., Burdanova, M., Boland, J., Cocker, T., & Hegmann, F.

In the 60 years since the invention of the laser, the scientific community has developed numerous fields of research based on these bright, coherent light sources, including the areas of imaging, spectroscopy, materials processing and communications. Ultrafast spectroscopy and imaging techniques are at the forefront of research into the light–matter interaction at the shortest times accessible to experiments, ranging from a few attoseconds to nanoseconds. Light pulses provide a crucial probe of the dynamical motion of charges, spins, and atoms on picosecond, femtosecond, and down to attosecond timescales, none of which are accessible even with the fastest electronic devices. Furthermore, strong light pulses can drive materials into unusual phases, with exotic properties. In this roadmap we describe the current state-of-the-art in experimental and theoretical studies of condensed matter using ultrafast probes. In each contribution, the authors also use their extensive knowledge to highlight challenges and predict future trends.

J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 33 353001 (2021)

Göbel, A., Rubio, A., & Lischner, J.

Charge transfer between molecules and catalysts plays a critical role in determining the efficiency and yield of photochemical catalytic processes. In this paper, we study light-induced electron transfer between transition-metal-doped aluminum clusters and CO₂ molecules using first-principles time-dependent density-functional theory. Specifically, we carry out calculations for a range of dopants (Zr, Mn, Fe, Ru, Co, Ni, and Cu) and find that the resulting systems fall into two categories: Cu- and Fe-doped clusters exhibit no ground-state charge transfer, weak CO₂ adsorption, and light-induced electron transfer into the CO₂. In all other systems, we observe ground-state electron transfer into the CO₂ resulting in strong adsorption and predominantly light-induced electron back-transfer from the CO₂ into the cluster. These findings pave the way toward a rational design of atomically precise aluminum photocatalysts.

J. Phys. Chem. A, 125, 27, 5878–5885 (2021)

Welakuh, D., Ruggenthaler, M., Tchenkoue Djouom, M.-L., Appel, H., & Rubio, A.

The availability of efficient photon sources with specific properties is important for quantum-technological applications. However, the realization of such photon sources is often challenging and hence alternative perspectives that suggest different means to enhance desired properties while suppressing detrimental processes are valuable. In this work we highlight that ab initio simulations of coupled light-matter systems can provide such alternative avenues. We show for a simple model of a quantum ring that by treating light and matter on equal footing, we can create and enhance pathways for down-conversion processes. By changing the matter subsystem as well as the photonic environment in experimentally feasible ways, we can engineer hybrid light-matter states that enhance at the same time the efficiency of the down-conversion process and the nonclassicality of the created photons. Furthermore, we show that this also leads to a faster down-conversion, potentially avoiding detrimental decoherence effects.

Phys. Rev. Research 3, 033067 (2021)

Sato, S., & Rubio, A.

Based on the quantum master equation approach, the nonlinear electric conductivity of graphene is investigated under static electric fields for various chemical potential shifts. The simulation results show that, as the field strength increases, the effective conductivity is firstly suppressed, reflecting the depletion of effective carriers due to the large displacement in the Brillouin zone caused by the strong field. Then, as the field strength exceeds 1 MV m⁻¹, the effective conductivity increases, overcoming the carrier depletion via the Landau–Zener tunneling process. Based on the nonlinear behavior of the conductivity, the charge transport induced by few-cycle THz pulses is studied to elucidate the ultrafast control of electric current in matter.

New J. Phys. 23 063047 (2021)

Neufeld, O., Hübener, H., Rubio, A., & de Giovannini, U.

We derive here a highly selective photoelectron-based chirality-sensing technique that utilizes “locally chiral” laser pulses. We show that this approach results in strong chiral discrimination, where the standard forwards/backwards asymmetry of photoelectron circular dichroism (PECD) is lifted. The resulting dichroism is larger and more robust than conventional PECD (especially in the high-energy part of the spectrum), is found in all hemispheres, and is not symmetric or antisymmetric with respect to any symmetry operator. Remarkably, chiral dichroism of up to 10% survives in the angularly integrated above-threshold ionization (ATI) spectra, and chiral dichroism of up to 5% survives in the total ionization rates. We demonstrate these results through ab initio calculations in the chiral molecules bromochlorofluoromethane, limonene, fenchone, and camphor. We also explore the parameter space of the locally chiral field and show that the observed dichroism is strongly correlated to the degree of chirality of the light, validating it as a measure for chiral-interaction strengths. Our results pave the way for highly selective probing of ultrafast chirality in ATI and motivate the use of locally chiral light for enhancing ultrafast spectroscopies. Most importantly, the technique can be implemented to achieve all-optical enantiopurification of chiral samples.

Phys. Rev. Research 3, L032006 (2021)

Beaulieu, S., Dong, S., Tancogne-Dejean, N., Dendzik, M., Pincelli, T., Maklar, J., Xian, R. P., Sentef, M. A., Wolf, M., Rubio, A., Rettig, L., & Ernstorfer, R.

Fermi surface is at the heart of our understanding of metals and strongly correlated many-body systems. An abrupt change in the Fermi surface topology, also called Lifshitz transition, can lead to the emergence of fascinating phenomena like colossal magnetoresistance and superconductivity. While Lifshitz transitions have been demonstrated for a broad range of materials by equilibrium tuning of macroscopic parameters such as strain, doping, pressure, and temperature, a nonequilibrium dynamical route toward ultrafast modification of the Fermi surface topology has not been experimentally demonstrated. Combining time-resolved multidimensional photoemission spectroscopy with state-of-the-art TDDFT+U simulations, we introduce a scheme for driving an ultrafast Lifshitz transition in the correlated type-II Weyl semimetal T_d-MoTe₂. We demonstrate that this nonequilibrium topological electronic transition finds its microscopic origin in the dynamical modification of the effective electronic correlations. These results shed light on a previously unexplored ultrafast scheme for controlling the Fermi surface topology in correlated quantum materials.

Science Advances, 7(17): eabd9275 (2021)

Shin, D., Tancogne-Dejean, N., Zhang, J., Okyay, M. S., Rubio, A., & Park, N.

We investigate the low-temperature charge density wave (CDW) state of bulk TaS₂ with a fully self-consistent density-functional theory with the Hubbard U potential, over which the controversy has remained unresolved regarding the out-of-plane metallic band. By examining the innate structure of the Hubbard U potential, we reveal that the conventional use of atomic-orbital basis could seriously misevaluate the electron correlation in the CDW state. By adopting a generalized basis, covering the whole David star, we successfully reproduce the Mott insulating nature with the layer-by-layer antiferromagnetic order. Similar consideration should be applied for description of the electron correlation in molecular solid.

PhysRevLett.126.196406 (2021)

Yu, W., Gao, C.-Z., Sato, S., Castro, A., Rubio, A., & Wei, B.

We calculate the charge-transfer cross sections for the Ne²⁺+He collision. To this end, we employ Ehrenfest molecular dynamics with time-dependent density-functional theory. The active electrons of the projectile are handled by applying an initial velocity to the Kohn-Sham orbitals via a Galilean boost. The dynamical calculations are performed in an inverse collision framework—the reference frame considers Ne²⁺ to be initially at rest, which ensures numerically converged final-time scattering states. The charge-transfer probabilities are extracted by extending the particle number projection technique to be able to handle the degenerate Ne²⁺ ion. Compared with experimental data available at 10–3000 keV, a fairly good agreement is found for the calculated single- and double-charge transfer cross sections, superior to other theoretical calculations for this Ne²⁺+He collision. A time-resolved analysis of the charge-transfer probabilities finds that ionization to the continuum also takes place after the charge transfer has occurred. To account for it, the final scattering states should be followed for a long time, approximately 350 fs, until they stabilize.

Phys. Rev. A 103, 032816 (2021)

Lively, K., Albareda Piquer, G., Sato, S., Kelly, A., & Rubio, A.

We show how linear vibronic spectra in molecular systems can be simulated efficiently using first-principles approaches without relying on the explicit use of multiple Born–Oppenheimer potential energy surfaces. We demonstrate and analyze the performance of mean-field and beyond-mean-field dynamics techniques for the H₂ molecule in one dimension, in the later case capturing the vibronic structure quite accurately, including quantum Franck–Condon effects. In a practical application of this methodology we simulate the absorption spectrum of benzene in full dimensionality using time-dependent density functional theory at the multitrajectory Ehrenfest level, finding good qualitative agreement with experiment and significant spectral reweighting compared to commonly used single-trajectory Ehrenfest dynamics. These results form the foundation for nonlinear spectral calculations and show promise for future application in capturing phenomena associated with vibronic coupling in more complex molecular and potentially condensed phase systems.

J. Phys. Chem. Lett. , 12, 12, 3074–3081 (2021)

Liu, B., Xian, L. D., Mu, H., Zhao, G., Liu, Z., Rubio, A., & Wang, Z.

The two-dimensional (2D) twisted bilayer materials with van der Waals coupling have ignited great research interests, paving a new way to explore the emergent quantum phenomena by twist degree of freedom. Generally, with the decreasing of twist angle, the enhanced interlayer coupling will gradually flatten the low-energy bands and isolate them by two high-energy gaps at zero and full filling, respectively. Although the correlation and topological physics in the low-energy flat bands have been intensively studied, little information is available for these two emerging gaps. In this Letter, we predict a 2D second-order topological insulator (SOTI) for twisted bilayer graphene and twisted bilayer boron nitride in both zero and full filling gaps. Employing a tight-binding Hamiltonian based on first-principles calculations, three unique fingerprints of 2D SOTI are identified, that is, nonzero bulk topological index, gapped topological edge state, and in-gap topological corner state. Most remarkably, the 2D SOTI exists in a wide range of commensurate twist angles, which is robust to microscopic structure disorder and twist center, greatly facilitating the possible experimental measurement. Our results not only extend the higher-order band topology to massless and massive twisted moiré superlattice, but also demonstrate the importance of high-energy bands for fully understanding the nontrivial electronics.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 126, 066401 (2021)

Pérez Paz, A., & Rubio, A.

We present a systematic computational study of submonolayer coverage of alkali atoms (Na, K, Cs) on Cu(111) surface hydrated from 1 to 6 water molecules. Our calculations show that water molecules preferentially bind to the adsorbed alkali ion and that a gradual detachment of the alkali from the Cu(111) surface is found as the hydration increases. This decoupling of the alkali from the Cu(111) surface results in a linear decrease of the charge transfer to the substrate. The orientation of the water dipoles pointing toward the surface leads to a gradual increase of the work function of the substrate as the number of coordinated water molecules increases from 1 to 4. Beyond 5 coordinated water molecules, the alkali adatom becomes saturated, and water adsorption sets in on the Cu(111) surface with the expected decrease in the work function of the system, as measured in two-photon photoemission spectroscopy (2PPE) experiments. From the detailed analysis of the orientation of the water electric dipoles, we were able to understand the experimentally observed initial increase of work function upon hydration and its subsequent decrease after saturation of alkali sites with water molecules. From the calculated energetics, we gauge the relative strengths of the alkali–Cu(111), alkali–water, and water–Cu(111) interactions as we move across the alkaline group. We found an excellent linear correlation between experimental water desorption temperatures and our computed water–alkali binding energies on Cu(111).

J. Phys. Chem. C, 125, 7, 3868–3879 (2021)

Erik P. Månsson, Simone Latini, Fabio Covito, Vincent Wanie, Mara Galli, Enrico Perfetto, Gianluca Stefanucci, Hannes Hübener, Umberto De Giovannini, Mattea C. Castrovilli, Andrea Trabattoni, Fabio Frassetto, Luca Poletto, Jason B. Greenwood, François Légaré, Mauro Nisoli, Angel Rubio & Francesca Calegari

Sudden ionisation of a relatively large molecule can initiate a correlation-driven process dubbed charge migration, where the electron density distribution is expected to rapidly move along the molecular backbone. Capturing this few-femtosecond or attosecond charge redistribution would represent the real-time observation of electron correlation in a molecule with the enticing prospect of following the energy flow from a single excited electron to the other coupled electrons in the system. Here, we report a time-resolved study of the correlation-driven charge migration process occurring in the nucleic-acid base adenine after ionisation with a 15–35 eV attosecond pulse. We find that the production of intact doubly charged adenine – via a shortly-delayed laser-induced second ionisation event – represents the signature of a charge inflation mechanism resulting from many-body excitation. This conclusion is supported by first-principles time-dependent simulations. These findings may contribute to the control of molecular reactivity at the electronic, few-femtosecond time scale.

Commun Chem 4, 73 (2021)

Kerelsky, A., Rubio-Verdú, C., Xian, L. D., Kennes, D. M., Halbertal, D., Finney, N., Song, L., Turkel, S., Wang, L., Watanabe, K., Taniguchi, T., Hone, J., Dean, C., Basov, D., Rubio, A., & Pasupathy, A. N.

Atomically thin van der Waals materials stacked with an interlayer twist have proven to be an excellent platform toward achieving gate-tunable correlated phenomena linked to the formation of flat electronic bands. In this work we demonstrate the formation of emergent correlated phases in multilayer rhombohedral graphene––a simple material that also exhibits a flat electronic band edge but without the need of having a moiré superlattice induced by twisted van der Waals layers. We show that two layers of bilayer graphene that are twisted by an arbitrary tiny angle host large (micrometer-scale) regions of uniform rhombohedral four-layer (ABCA) graphene that can be independently studied. Scanning tunneling spectroscopy reveals that ABCA graphene hosts an unprecedentedly sharp van Hove singularity of 3–5-meV half-width. We demonstrate that when this van Hove singularity straddles the Fermi level, a correlated many-body gap emerges with peak-to-peak value of 9.5 meV at charge neutrality. Mean-field theoretical calculations for model with short-ranged interactions indicate that two primary candidates for the appearance of this broken symmetry state are a charge-transfer excitonic insulator and a ferrimagnet. Finally, we show that ABCA graphene hosts surface topological helical edge states at natural interfaces with ABAB graphene which can be turned on and off with gate voltage, implying that small-angle twisted double-bilayer graphene is an ideal programmable topological quantum material.

PNAS, 118 (4) e2017366118 (2021)

Alexandre Marciniak, Stefano Marcantoni, Francesca Giusti, Filippo Glerean, Giorgia Sparapassi, Tobia Nova, Andrea Cartella, Simone Latini, Francesco Valiera, Angel Rubio, Jeroen van den Brink, Fabio Benatti & Daniele Fausti

Addressing the role of quantum coherence in the interplay between the different matter constituents (electrons, phonons and spin) is a critical step towards understanding transition metal oxides and designing complex materials with new functionalities. Here we use coherent vibrational control of on-site d–d electronic transitions in a model edge-sharing insulating transition metal oxide (CuGeO₃) to single out the effects of vibrational coherence in electron–phonon coupling. By comparing time-domain experiments based on high- and low-photon-energy ultrashort laser excitation pulses with a fully quantum description of phonon-assisted absorption, we could distinguish the processes associated with incoherent thermal lattice fluctuations from those driven by the coherent motion of the atoms. In particular, while thermal fluctuations of the phonon bath uniformly increase the electronic absorption, the resonant excitation of phonon modes also results in light-induced transparency that is coherently controlled by the vibrational motion.

Nat. Phys. (2021)

Dorri Halbertal, Nathan R. Finney, Sai S. Sunku, Alexander Kerelsky, Carmen Rubio-Verdú, Sara Shabani, Lede Xian, Stephen Carr, Shaowen Chen, Charles Zhang, Lei Wang, Derick Gonzalez-Acevedo, Alexander S. McLeod, Daniel Rhodes, Kenji Watanabe, Takashi Taniguchi, Efthimios Kaxiras, Cory R. Dean, James C. Hone, Abhay N. Pasupathy, Dante M. Kennes, Angel Rubio & D. N. Basov

The emerging field of twistronics, which harnesses the twist angle between two-dimensional materials, represents a promising route for the design of quantum materials, as the twist-angle-induced superlattices offer means to control topology and strong correlations. At the small twist limit, and particularly under strain, as atomic relaxation prevails, the emergent moiré superlattice encodes elusive insights into the local interlayer interaction. Here we introduce moiré metrology as a combined experiment-theory framework to probe the stacking energy landscape of bilayer structures at the 0.1 meV/atom scale, outperforming the gold-standard of quantum chemistry. Through studying the shapes of moiré domains with numerous nano-imaging techniques, and correlating with multi-scale modelling, we assess and refine first-principle models for the interlayer interaction. We document the prowess of moiré metrology for three representative twisted systems: bilayer graphene, double bilayer graphene and H-stacked MoSe₂/WSe₂. Moiré metrology establishes sought after experimental benchmarks for interlayer interaction, thus enabling accurate modelling of twisted multilayers.

Nat Commun 12, 242 (2021)

Shunsuke A. Sato, Hideki Hirori, Yasuyuki Sanari, Yoshihiko Kanemitsu, Angel Rubio

We investigate high-order harmonic generation (HHG) in graphene with a quantum master equation approach. The simulations reproduce the observed enhancement in HHG in graphene under elliptically polarized light [N. Yoshikawa et al, Science 356, 736 (2017)]. On the basis of a microscopic decomposition of the emitted high-order harmonics, we find that the enhancement in HHG originates from an intricate nonlinear coupling between the intraband and interband transitions that are respectively induced by perpendicular electric field components of the elliptically polarized light. Furthermore, we reveal that contributions from different excitation channels destructively interfere with each other. This finding suggests a path to potentially enhance the HHG by blocking a part of the channels and canceling the destructive interference through band-gap or chemical potential manipulation. 

Phys. Rev. B 103, L041408 (2021)

Debnath, A., & Rubio, A.

We present a theoretical formulation of the frequency domain multidimensional pump-probe analog spectroscopy, which utilizes the spectral–temporal entanglement features of the biphoton sources. It has been shown, via a compact multi-time, convolutional Green’s function expression and the accompanying numerical simulations, that utilizing the correlation properties of non-classical sources offers a viable scheme for the exploration of dissipative kinetics of the cavity confined quantum aggregates. The cooperative and competitive modifications brought in by the photonic cavity mode and the auxiliary vibrational modes into the scattering and dephasing properties of the exciton–polaritons have been explored via their signatures in the multidimensional correlation maps. The study offers a new parameter window for the investigation of the dynamical polariton characteristics and warrants the usage of multi-mode entanglement properties of the external photonic sources in future studies.

Journal of Applied Physics 128, 113102 (2020)

Alexandre Marciniak, Stefano Marcantoni, Francesca Giusti, Filippo Glerean, Giorgia Sparapassi, Tobia Nova, Andrea Cartella, Simone Latini, Francesco Valiera, Angel Rubio, Jeroen van den Brink, Fabio Benatti & Daniele Fausti

Addressing the role of quantum coherence in the interplay between the different matter constituents (electrons, phonons and spin) is a critical step towards understanding transition metal oxides and designing complex materials with new functionalities. Here we use coherent vibrational control of on-site d–d electronic transitions in a model edge-sharing insulating transition metal oxide (CuGeO₃) to single out the effects of vibrational coherence in electron–phonon coupling. By comparing time-domain experiments based on high- and low-photon-energy ultrashort laser excitation pulses with a fully quantum description of phonon-assisted absorption, we could distinguish the processes associated with incoherent thermal lattice fluctuations from those driven by the coherent motion of the atoms. In particular, while thermal fluctuations of the phonon bath uniformly increase the electronic absorption, the resonant excitation of phonon modes also results in light-induced transparency that is coherently controlled by the vibrational motion.

Nat. Phys. (2021)

Mrudul, M. S., Tancogne-Dejean, N., Rubio, A., & Dixit, G.

The generation of high-order harmonics in gases enabled to probe the attosecond electron dynamics in atoms and molecules with unprecedented resolution. Extending these techniques to solids, which were originally developed for atomic and molecular gases, requires a fundamental understanding of the physics that has been partially addressed theoretically. Here, we employ time-dependent density-functional theory to investigate how the electron dynamics resulting in high-harmonic emission in monolayer hexagonal boron nitride is affected by the presence of vacancies. We show how these realistic spin-polarised defects modify the harmonic emission and demonstrate that important differences exist between harmonics from a pristine solid and a defected solid. In particular, we found that the different spin channels are affected differently by the presence of the spin-polarised point defect. Moreover, the localisation of the wavefunction, the geometry of the defect, and the electron–electron interaction are all crucial ingredients to describe high-harmonic generation in defected solids.

npj Comput Mater 6, 10 (2020)

Baldini, E., Sentef, M. A., Acharya, S., Brumme, T., Sheveleva, E., Lyzwa, F., et al.

The role of the crystal lattice for the electronic properties of cuprates and other high-temperature superconductors remains controversial despite decades of theoretical and experimental efforts. While the paradigm of strong electronic correlations suggests a purely electronic mechanism behind the insulator-to-metal transition, recently the mutual enhancement of the electron–electron and the electron–phonon interaction and its relevance to the formation of the ordered phases have also been emphasized. Here, we combine polarization-resolved ultrafast optical spectroscopy and state-of-the-art dynamical mean-field theory to show the importance of the crystal lattice in the breakdown of the correlated insulating state in an archetypal undoped cuprate. We identify signatures of electron–phonon coupling to specific fully symmetric optical modes during the buildup of a three-dimensional (3D) metallic state that follows charge photodoping. Calculations for coherently displaced crystal structures along the relevant phonon coordinates indicate that the insulating state is remarkably unstable toward metallization despite the seemingly large charge-transfer energy scale. This hitherto unobserved insulator-to-metal transition mediated by fully symmetric lattice modes can find extensive application in a plethora of correlated solids.

PNAS 117 (12) 6409-6416 (2020)

Wang, L., Shih, E.-M., Ghiotto, A., Xian, L. D., Rhodes, D. A., Tan, C., Claassen, M., Kennes, D. M., Bai, Y., Kim, B., Watanabe, K., Taniguchi, T., Zhu, X., Hone, J., Rubio, A., Pasupathy, A., & Dean, C. R.

In narrow electron bands in which the Coulomb interaction energy becomes comparable to the bandwidth, interactions can drive new quantum phases. Such flat bands in twisted graphene-based systems result in correlated insulator, superconducting and topological states. Here we report evidence of low-energy flat bands in twisted bilayer WSe2, with signatures of collective phases observed over twist angles that range from 4 to 5.1°. At half-band filling, a correlated insulator appeared that is tunable with both twist angle and displacement field. At a 5.1° twist, zero-resistance pockets were observed on doping away from half filling at temperatures below 3 K, which indicates a possible transition to a superconducting state. The observation of tunable collective phases in a simple band, which hosts only two holes per unit cell at full filling, establishes twisted bilayer transition metal dichalcogenides as an ideal platform to study correlated physics in two dimensions on a triangular lattice.

Nat. Mater. 19, 861–866 (2020)

Florian Buchholz, Iris Theophilou, Klaas J. H. Giesbertz, Michael Ruggenthaler, and Angel Rubio

A detailed understanding of strong matter–photon interactions requires first-principle methods that can solve the fundamental Pauli–Fierz Hamiltonian of nonrelativistic quantum electrodynamics efficiently. A possible way to extend well-established electronic-structure methods to this situation is to embed the Pauli–Fierz Hamiltonian in a higher-dimensional light–matter hybrid auxiliary configuration space. In this work we show the importance of the resulting hybrid Fermi–Bose statistics of the polaritons, which are the new fundamental particles of the “photon-dressed” Pauli–Fierz Hamiltonian for systems in cavities. We show that violations of these statistics can lead to unphysical results. We present an efficient way to ensure the correct statistics by enforcing representability conditions on the dressed one-body reduced density matrix. We further present a general prescription how to extend a given first-principles approach to polaritons and as an example introduce polaritonic Hartree–Fock theory. While being a single-reference method in polariton space, polaritonic Hartree–Fock is a multireference method in the electronic space, i.e., it describes electronic correlations. We also discuss possible applications to polaritonic QEDFT. We apply this theory to a lattice model and find that, the more delocalized the bound-state wave function of the particles is, the stronger it reacts to photons. The main reason is that within a small energy range, many states with different electronic configurations are available as opposed to a strongly bound (and hence energetically separated) ground-state wave function. This indicates that under certain conditions coupling to the quantum vacuum of a cavity can indeed modify ground state properties.

J. Chem. Theory Comput. , 16, 9, 5601–5620 (2020)

Tor S. Haugland, Enrico Ronca, Eirik F. Kjønstad, Angel Rubio, and Henrik Koch

We present an ab initio correlated approach to study molecules that interact strongly with quantum fields in an optical cavity. Quantum electrodynamics coupled cluster theory provides a nonperturbative description of cavity-induced effects in ground and excited states. Using this theory, we show how quantum fields can be used to manipulate charge transfer and photochemical properties of molecules. We propose a strategy to lift electronic degeneracies and induce modifications in the ground-state potential energy surface close to a conical intersection.

Phys. Rev. X 10, 041043 (2020)

M. Nuske, L. Broers, B. Schulte, G. Jotzu, S. A. Sato, A. Cavalleri, A. Rubio, J. W. McIver, L. Mathey

We demonstrate how the properties of light-induced electronic Floquet states in solids impact natural physical observables, such as transport properties, by capturing the environmental influence on the electrons. We include the environment as dissipative processes, such as inter-band decay and dephasing, often ignored in Floquet predictions. These dissipative processes determine the Floquet band occupations of the emergent steady state, by balancing out the optical driving force. In order to benchmark and illustrate our framework for Floquet physics in a realistic solid, we consider the light-induced Hall conductivity in graphene recently reported by J.~W.~McIver, et al., Nature Physics (2020). We show that the Hall conductivity is estimated by the Berry flux of the occupied states of the light-induced Floquet bands, in addition to the kinetic contribution given by the average band velocity. Hence, Floquet theory provides an interpretation of this Hall conductivity as a geometric-dissipative effect. We demonstrate this mechanism within a master equation formalism, and obtain good quantitative agreement with the experimentally measured Hall conductivity, underscoring the validity of this approach which establishes a broadly applicable framework for the understanding of ultrafast non-equilibrium dynamics in solids. 

Phys. Rev. Research 2, 043408 (2020)

N. Klemke, O. D. Mücke, A. Rubio, F. X. Kärtner, and N. Tancogne-Dejean

Recent studies have demonstrated that the polarization states of high harmonics from solids can differ from those of the driving pulses. To gain insights on the microscopic origin of this behavior, we perform one-particle intraband-only calculations and reproduce some of the most striking observations. For instance, our calculations yield circularly polarized harmonics from elliptically polarized pulses that sensitively depend on the driving conditions. Furthermore, we perform experiments on ZnS and find characteristics partly similar to those reported from silicon. Comparison to our intraband-only calculations shows reasonable qualitative agreement for a below-band-gap harmonic. We show that intraband dynamics predict depolarization effects that gain significance with higher field strengths and we observe such effects in the experimental data. For harmonics above the band gap, interband dynamics become important and the high-harmonic response to elliptical excitation looks systematically different. Our work proposes a method to distinguish between different high-harmonic generation mechanisms and it could pave the way to compact solid-state high-harmonic sources with controllable polarization states.

Phys. Rev. B 102, 104308 (2020)

Shi, J., Baldini, E., Latini, S., Sato, S., Zhang, Y., Pein, B. C., Shen, P.-C., Kong, J., Rubio, A., Gedik, N., & Nelson, K. A.

The interaction between off-resonant laser pulses and excitons in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides is attracting increasing interest as a route for the valley-selective coherent control of the exciton properties. Here, we extend the classification of the known off-resonant phenomena by unveiling the impact of a strong THz field on the excitonic resonances of monolayer MoS_2. We observe that the THz pump pulse causes a selective modification of the coherence lifetime of the excitons, while keeping their oscillator strength and peak energy unchanged. We rationalize these results theoretically by invoking a hitherto unobserved manifestation of the Franz–Keldysh effect on an exciton resonance. As the modulation depth of the optical absorption reaches values as large as 0.05 dB/nm at room temperature, our findings open the way to the use of semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides as compact and efficient platforms for high-speed electroabsorption devices.

Nano Lett. , 20, 7, 5214–5220 (2020)

G. Gatti, A. Crepaldi, M. Puppin, N. Tancogne-Dejean, L. Xian, U. De Giovannini, S. Roth, S. Polishchuk, Ph. Bugnon, A. Magrez, H. Berger, F. Frassetto, L. Poletto, L. Moreschini, S. Moser, A. Bostwick, Eli Rotenberg, A. Rubio, M. Chergui, and M. Grioni

In nodal-line semimetals, linearly dispersing states form Dirac loops in the reciprocal space with a high degree of electron-hole symmetry and a reduced density of states near the Fermi level. The result is reduced electronic screening and enhanced correlations between Dirac quasiparticles. Here we investigate the electronic structure of ZrSiSe, by combining time- and angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy with ab initio density functional theory (DFT) complemented by an extended Hubbard model (DFT+U+V) and by time-dependent DFT+U+V. We show that electronic correlations are reduced on an ultrashort timescale by optical excitation of high-energy electrons-hole pairs, which transiently screen the Coulomb interaction. Our findings demonstrate an all-optical method for engineering the band structure of a quantum material.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 125, 076401 (2020)

Theophilou, I., Penz, M., Ruggenthaler, M., & Rubio, A.

In this work, we present a set of virial relations for many electron systems coupled to both classical and quantum fields, described by the Pauli–Fierz Hamiltonian in dipole approximation and using length gauge. Currently, there is growing interest in solutions of this Hamiltonian because of its relevance for describing molecular systems strongly coupled to photonic modes in cavities and in the possible modification of chemical properties of such systems compared to the ones in free space. The relevance of such virial relations is demonstrated by showing a connection to mass renormalization and by providing an exact way to obtain total energies from potentials in the framework of quantum electrodynamical density functional theory.

J. Chem. Theory Comput. 2020, 16, 10, 6236–6243 (2020)

Hoffmann, N., Lacombe, L., Rubio, A., & Maitra, N. T.

The standard description of cavity-modified molecular reactions typically involves a single (resonant) mode, while in reality, the quantum cavity supports a range of photon modes. Here, we demonstrate that as more photon modes are accounted for, physicochemical phenomena can dramatically change, as illustrated by the cavity-induced suppression of the important and ubiquitous process of proton-coupled electron-transfer. Using a multi-trajectory Ehrenfest treatment for the photon-modes, we find that self-polarization effects become essential, and we introduce the concept of self-polarization-modified Born–Oppenheimer surfaces as a new construct to analyze dynamics. As the number of cavity photon modes increases, the increasing deviation of these surfaces from the cavity-free Born–Oppenheimer surfaces, together with the interplay between photon emission and absorption inside the widening bands of these surfaces, leads to enhanced suppression. The present findings are general and will have implications for the description and control of cavity-driven physical processes of molecules, nanostructures, and solids embedded in cavities.

J. Chem. Phys. 153, 104103 (2020)

Tancogne-Dejean, N., & Rubio, A.

In this paper, we propose an energy functional at the level of DFT+U+V that allows us to compute self-consistently the values of the onsite interaction, Hubbard U and Hund J, as well as the intersite interaction V. This functional extends the previously proposed ACBN0 functional [L. A. Agapito et al., Phys. Rev. X 5, 011006 (2015)] including both onsite and intersite interactions. We show that this ab initio self-consistent functional yields improved electronic properties for a wide range of materials, ranging from sp materials to strongly correlated materials. This functional can also be seen as an alternative general and systematic way to construct parameter-free hybrid functionals, based on the extended Hubbard model and a selected set of Coulomb integrals, and might be used to develop novel approximations. By extending the DFT+U method to materials where strong local and nonlocal interactions are relevant, this work opens the door to the ab initio study the electronic, ionic, and optical properties of a larger class of strongly correlated materials in and out of equilibrium.

Phys. Rev. B 102, 155117 (2020)

Shin, D., Sato, S., Hübener, H., de Giovannini, U., Park, N., & Rubio, A.

Ultrafast optical control of ferroelectricity using intense terahertz fields has attracted significant interest. Here we show that the nonlinear interactions between two optical phonons in SnTe, a two-dimensional in-plane ferroelectric material, enables a dynamical amplification of the electric polarization within subpicoseconds time domain. Our first-principles time-dependent simulations show that the infrared-active out-of-plane phonon mode, pumped to nonlinear regimes, spontaneously generates in-plane motions, leading to rectified oscillations in the in-plane electric polarization. We suggest that this dynamical control of ferroelectric material, by nonlinear phonon excitation, can be utilized to achieve ultrafast control of the photovoltaic or other nonlinear optical responses.

npj Comput Mater 6, 182 (2020)

Wagstaffe, M., Wenthaus, L., Dominguez-Castro, A., Chung, S., Lana Semione, G. D., Palutke, S., Mercurio, G., Dziarzhytski, S., Redlin, H., Klemke, N., Yang, Y., Frauenheim, T., Dominguez, A., Kärtner, F., Rubio, A., Wurth, W., Stierle, A., & Noei, H.

Femtosecond X-ray laser pulses synchronized with an optical laser were employed to investigate the reaction dynamics of the photooxidation of CO on the anatase TiO₂(101) surface in real time. Our time-resolved soft X-ray photoemission spectroscopy results provide evidence of ultrafast timescales and, coupled with theoretical calculations, clarify the mechanism of oxygen activation that is crucial to unraveling the underlying processes for a range of photocatalytic reactions relevant to air purification and self-cleaning surfaces. The reaction takes place between 1.2 and 2.8 (±0.2) ps after irradiation with an ultrashort laser pulse leading to the formation of CO₂, prior to which no intermediate species were observed on a picosecond time scale. Our theoretical calculations predict that the presence of intragap unoccupied O₂ levels leads to the formation of a charge-transfer complex. This allows the reaction to be initiated following laser illumination at a photon energy of 1.6 eV (770 nm), taking place via a proposed mechanism involving the direct transfer of electrons from TiO₂ to physisorbed O₂.

ACS Catal. 2020, 10, 22, 13650–13658 (2020)

Daniel J. Rizzo, Bjarke S. Jessen, Zhiyuan Sun, Francesco L. Ruta, Jin Zhang, Jia-Qiang Yan, Lede Xian, Alexander S. McLeod, Michael E. Berkowitz, Kenji Watanabe, Takashi Taniguchi, Stephen E. Nagler, David G. Mandrus, Angel Rubio, Michael M. Fogler, Andrew J. Millis, James C. Hone, Cory R. Dean, and D. N. Basov

Nanoscale charge control is a key enabling technology in plasmonics, electronic band structure engineering, and the topology of two-dimensional materials. By exploiting the large electron affinity of α-RuCl₃, we are able to visualize and quantify massive charge transfer at graphene/α-RuCl₃ interfaces through generation of charge-transfer plasmon polaritons (CPPs). We performed nanoimaging experiments on graphene/α-RuCl₃ at both ambient and cryogenic temperatures and discovered robust plasmonic features in otherwise ungated and undoped structures. The CPP wavelength evaluated through several distinct imaging modalities offers a high-fidelity measure of the Fermi energy of the graphene layer: E_F = 0.6 eV (n = 2.7 × 10¹³ cm^–2). Our first-principles calculations link the plasmonic response to the work function difference between graphene and α-RuCl₃ giving rise to CPPs. Our results provide a novel general strategy for generating nanometer-scale plasmonic interfaces without resorting to external contacts or chemical doping.

Nano Letters, 20(12), 8438-8445 (2020)

Andrea Trabattoni, Lorenzo Colaizzi, Loren Ban, Vincent Wanie, Krishna Saraswathula, Erik P Månsson, Philipp Rupp, Qingcao Liu, Lennart Seiffert, Elisabeth A Herzig, Andrea Cartella, Bruce L Yoder, François Légaré, Matthias F Kling, Thomas Fennel, Ruth Signorell and Francesca Calegari

Detailed knowledge about photo-induced electron dynamics in water is key to the understanding of several biological and chemical mechanisms, in particular for those resulting from ionizing radiation. Here we report a method to obtain photoelectron spectra from neutral water clusters following ionization by an extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) attosecond pulse train, representing a first step towards a time-resolved analysis. Typically, a large background signal in the experiment arises from water monomers and carrier gas used in the cluster source. We report a protocol to quantify this background in order to eliminate it from the experimental spectra. We disentangle the accumulated XUV photoionization signal into contributions from the background species and the photoelectron spectra from the clusters. This proof-of-principle study demonstrates feasibility of background free photoelectron spectra of neutral water clusters ionized by XUV combs and paves the way for the detailed time-resolved analysis of the underlying dynamics.

J. Phys. Photonics 2 035007 (2020)

Christian Schäfer, Michael Ruggenthaler, Vasil Rokaj, Angel Rubio

Experiments at the interface of quantum optics and chemistry have revealed that strong coupling between light and matter can substantially modify the chemical and physical properties of molecules and solids. While the theoretical description of such situations is usually based on nonrelativistic quantum electrodynamics, which contains quadratic light–matter coupling terms, it is commonplace to disregard these terms and restrict the treatment to purely bilinear couplings. In this work, we clarify the physical origin and the substantial impact of the most common quadratic terms, the diamagnetic and self-polarization terms, and highlight why neglecting them can lead to rather unphysical results. Specifically, we demonstrate their relevance by showing that neglecting these terms leads to the loss of gauge invariance, basis set dependence, disintegration (loss of bound states) of any system in the basis set limit, unphysical radiation of the ground state, and an artificial dependence on the static dipole. Besides providing important guidance for modeling of strongly coupled light–matter systems, the presented results also indicate conditions under which those effects might become accessible.

ACS Photonics 7, 4, 975–990 (2020)

Nicolas Tancogne-Dejean, Micael J. T. Oliveira, Xavier Andrade, Heiko Appel, Carlos H. Borca, Guillaume Le Breton, Florian Buchholz, Alberto Castro, Stefano Corni, Alfredo A. Correa, Umberto De Giovannini, Alain Delgado, Florian G. Eich, Johannes Flick, Gabriel Gil, Adrián Gomez, Nicole Helbig, Hannes Hübener, René Jestädt, Joaquim Jornet-Somoza, Ask H. Larsen, Irina V. Lebedeva, Martin Lüders, Miguel A. L. Marques, Sebastian T. Ohlmann, Silvio Pipolo, Markus Rampp, Carlo A. Rozzi, David A. Strubbe, Shunsuke A. Sato, Christian Schäfer, Iris Theophilou, Alicia Welden, and Angel Rubio

Over the last few years, extraordinary advances in experimental and theoretical tools have allowed us to monitor and control matter at short time and atomic scales with a high degree of precision. An appealing and challenging route toward engineering materials with tailored properties is to find ways to design or selectively manipulate materials, especially at the quantum level. To this end, having a state-of-the-art ab initio computer simulation tool that enables a reliable and accurate simulation of light-induced changes in the physical and chemical properties of complex systems is of utmost importance. The first principles real-space-based Octopus project was born with that idea in mind, i.e., to provide a unique framework that allows us to describe non-equilibrium phenomena in molecular complexes, low dimensional materials, and extended systems by accounting for electronic, ionic, and photon quantum mechanical effects within a generalized time-dependent density functional theory. This article aims to present the new features that have been implemented over the last few years, including technical developments related to performance and massive parallelism. We also describe the major theoretical developments to address ultrafast light-driven processes, such as the new theoretical framework of quantum electrodynamics density-functional formalism for the description of novel light–matter hybrid states. Those advances, and others being released soon as part of the Octopus package, will allow the scientific community to simulate and characterize spatial and time-resolved spectroscopies, ultrafast phenomena in molecules and materials, and new emergent states of matter (quantum electrodynamical-materials).

J. Chem. Phys. 152, 124119 (2020)

René Jestädt, Michael Ruggenthaler, Micael J. T. Oliveira, Angel Rubio &Heiko Appel

In recent years significant experimental advances in nano-scale fabrication techniques and in available light sources have opened the possibility to study a vast set of novel light-matter interaction scenarios, including strong coupling cases. In many situations nowadays, classical electromagnetic modeling is insufficient as quantum effects, both in matter and light, start to play an important role. Instead, a fully self-consistent and microscopic coupling of light and matter becomes necessary. We provide here a critical review of current approaches for electromagnetic modeling, highlighting their limitations. We show how to overcome these limitations by introducing the theoretical foundations and the implementation details of a density-functional approach for coupled photons, electrons, and effective nuclei in non-relativistic quantum electrodynamics. Starting point of the formalism is a generalization of the Pauli–Fierz field theory for which we establish a one-to-one correspondence between external fields and internal variables. Based on this correspondence, we introduce a Kohn-Sham construction which provides a computationally feasible approach for ab-initio light-matter interactions. In the mean-field limit, the formalism reduces to coupled Ehrenfest–Maxwell–Pauli–Kohn–Sham equations. We present an implementation of the approach in the real-space real-time code Octopus using the Riemann–Silberstein formulation of classical electrodynamics to rewrite Maxwell's equations in Schrödinger form. This allows us to use existing very efficient time-evolution algorithms developed for quantum-mechanical systems also for Maxwell's equations. We show how to couple the time-evolution of the electromagnetic fields self-consistently with the quantum time-evolution of the electrons and nuclei. This approach is ideally suited for applications in nano-optics, nano-plasmonics, (photo) electrocatalysis, light-matter coupling in 2D materials, cases where laser pulses carry orbital angular momentum, or light-tailored chemical reactions in optical cavities just to name but a few.

Advances in Physics,68:4, 225-333 (2020)

Giacomo Mazza, Malte Rösner, Lukas Windgätter, Simone Latini, Hannes Hübener, Andrew J. Millis, Angel Rubio, and Antoine Georges

Ta₂NiSe₅ is one of the most promising materials for hosting an excitonic insulator ground state. While a number of experimental observations have been interpreted in this way, the precise nature of the symmetry breaking occurring in Ta₂NiSe₅, the electronic order parameter, and a realistic microscopic description of the transition mechanism are, however, missing. By a symmetry analysis based on first-principles calculations, we uncover the discrete lattice symmetries which are broken at the transition. We identify a purely electronic order parameter of excitonic nature that breaks these discrete crystal symmetries and contributes to the experimentally observed lattice distortion from an orthorombic to a monoclinic phase. Our results provide a theoretical framework to understand and analyze the excitonic transition in Ta₂NiSe₅ and settle the fundamental questions about symmetry breaking governing the spontaneous formation of excitonic insulating phases in solid-state materials.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 197601 (2020)

Tchenkoue Djouom, M.-L., Penz, M., Theophilou, I., Ruggenthaler, M., & Rubio, A.

We propose a systematic and constructive way to determine the exchange-correlation potentials of density-functional theories including vector potentials. The approach does not rely on energy or action functionals. Instead, it is based on equations of motion of current quantities (force balance equations) and is feasible both in the ground-state and the time-dependent settings. This avoids, besides differentiability and causality issues, the optimized-effective-potential procedure of orbital-dependent functionals. We provide straightforward exchange-type approximations for different density functional theories that for a homogeneous system and no external vector potential reduce to the exchange-only local-density and Slater Xα approximations.

J. Chem. Phys. 151, 154107 (2019)

S. A. Sato, J. W. McIver, M. Nuske, P. Tang, G. Jotzu, B. Schulte, H. Hübener, U. De Giovannini, L. Mathey, M. A. Sentef, A. Cavalleri, and A. Rubio

We employ a quantum Liouville equation with relaxation to model the recently observed anomalous Hall effect in graphene irradiated by an ultrafast pulse of circularly polarized light. In the weak-field regime, we demonstrate that the Hall effect originates from an asymmetric population of photocarriers in the Dirac bands. By contrast, in the strong-field regime, the system is driven into a nonequilibrium steady state that is well described by topologically nontrivial Floquet-Bloch bands. Here, the anomalous Hall current originates from the combination of a population imbalance in these dressed bands together with a smaller anomalous velocity contribution arising from their Berry curvature. This robust and general finding enables the simulation of electrical transport from light-induced Floquet-Bloch bands in an experimentally relevant parameter regime and creates a pathway to designing ultrafast quantum devices with Floquet-engineered transport properties.

Phys. Rev. B 99, 214302 (2019)

Johannes Flick, Davis M. Welakuh, Michael Ruggenthaler, Heiko Appel, and Angel Rubio

We derive the full linear-response theory for nonrelativistic quantum electrodynamics in the long wavelength limit and provide a practical framework to solve the resulting equations by using quantum-electrodynamical density-functional theory. We highlight how the coupling between quantized light and matter changes the usual response functions and introduces cross-correlated light-matter response functions. These cross-correlation responses lead to measurable changes in Maxwell’s equations due to the quantum-matter-mediated photon–photon interactions. Key features of treating the combined matter-photon response are that natural lifetimes of excitations become directly accessible from first-principles, changes in the electronic structure due to strong light-matter coupling are treated fully nonperturbatively, and self-consistent solutions of the back-reaction of matter onto the photon vacuum and vice versa are accounted for. By introducing a straightforward extension of the random-phase approximation for the coupled matter-photon problem, we calculate the ab initio spectra for a real molecular system that is coupled to the quantized electromagnetic field. Our approach can be solved numerically very efficiently. The presented framework leads to a shift in paradigm by highlighting how electronically excited states arise as a modification of the photon field and that experimentally observed effects are always due to a complex interplay between light and matter. At the same time the findings provide a route to analyze as well as propose experiments at the interface between quantum chemistry, nanoplasmonics and quantum optics.

ACS Photonics 6, 11, 2757–2778 (2019)

O. Tkach et al.

X-ray photoelectron diffraction (XPD) is a powerful technique that yields detailed structural information of solids and thin films that complements electronic structure measurements. Among the strongholds of XPD we can identify dopant sites, track structural phase transitions, and perform holographic reconstruction. High-resolution imaging of k_ll-distributions (momentum microscopy) presents a new approach to core-level photoemission. It yields full-field k_x-k_y XPD patterns with unprecedented acquisition speed and richness in details. Here, we show that beyond the pure diffraction information, XPD patterns exhibit pronounced circular dichroism in the angular distribution (CDAD) with asymmetries up to 80 %, alongside with rapid variations on a small k_ll-scale (0.1 Å−1). Measurements with circularly-polarized hard X-rays (hν = 6 keV) for a number of core levels, including Si, Ge, Mo and W, prove that core-level CDAD is a general phenomenon that is independent of atomic number. The fine structure in CDAD is more pronounced compared to the corresponding intensity patterns. Additionally, they obey the same symmetry rules as found for atomic and molecular species, and valence bands. The CD is antisymmetric with respect to the mirror planes of the crystal, whose signatures are sharp zero lines. Calculations using both the Bloch-wave approach and one-step photoemission reveal the origin of the fine structure that represents the signature of Kikuchi diffraction. To disentangle the roles of photoexcitation and diffraction, XPD has been implemented into the Munich SPRKKR package to unify the one-step model of photoemission and multiple scattering theory.

Ultramicroscopy, 113750 (2023)

Davide Curcio, Klara Volckaert, Dmytro Kutnyakhov, Steinn Ymir Agustsson, Kevin Bühlmann, Federico Pressacco, Michael Heber, Siarhei Dziarzhytski, Yves Acremann, Jure Demsar, Wilfried Wurth, Charlotte E. Sanders, and Philip Hofmann

X-ray photoelectron diffraction is a powerful tool for determining the structure of clean and adsorbate-covered surfaces. Extending the technique into the ultrafast time domain will open the door to studies as diverse as the direct determination of the electron-phonon coupling strength in solids and the mapping of atomic motion in surface chemical reactions. Here we demonstrate time-resolved photoelectron diffraction using ultrashort soft x-ray pulses from the free electron laser FLASH. We collect Se 3d photoelectron diffraction patterns over a wide angular range from optically excited Bi₂Se₃ with a time resolution of 140 fs. Combining these with multiple scattering simulations allows us to track the motion of near-surface atoms within the first 3 ps after triggering a coherent vibration of the A1_g optical phonons. Using a fluence of 4.2mJ/cm² from a 1.55 eV pump laser, we find the resulting coherent vibrational amplitude in the first two interlayer spacings to be on the order of 0.01 Å.

Phys. Rev. B 106, L201409 (2022)

Michael Heber, Nils Wind, Dmytro Kutnyakhov, Federico Pressacco, Tiberiu Arion, Friedrich Roth, Wolfgang Eberhardt, and Kai Rossnagel

A 790-nm-driven high-harmonic generation source with a repetition rate of 6 kHz is combined with a toroidal-grating monochromator and a high-detection-efficiency photoelectron time-of-flight momentum microscope to enable time- and momentum-resolved photoemission spectroscopy over a spectral range of 23.6–45.5 eV with sub-100 fs time resolution. Three-dimensional (3D) Fermi surface mapping is demonstrated on graphene-covered Ir(111) with energy and momentum resolutions of ≲100 meV and ≲0.1 Å⁻¹, respectively. The tabletop experiment sets the stage for measuring the k_z-dependent ultrafast dynamics of 3D electronic structure, including band structure, Fermi surface, and carrier dynamics in 3D materials as well as 3D orbital dynamics in molecular layers.

Review of Scientific Instruments 93, 083905 (2022)

Kiana Baumgärtner, Marvin Reuner, Christian Metzger, Dmytro Kutnyakhov, Michael Heber, Federico Pressacco, Chul-Hee Min, Thiago R. F. Peixoto, Mario Reiser, Chan Kim, Wei Lu, Roman Shayduk, Manuel Izquierdo, Günter Brenner, Friedrich Roth, Achim Schöll, Serguei Molodtsov, Wilfried Wurth, Friedrich Reinert, Anders Madsen, Daria Popova-Gorelova & Markus Scholz

Time-resolved momentum microscopy provides insight into the ultrafast interplay between structural and electronic dynamics. Here we extend orbital tomography into the time domain in combination with time-resolved momentum microscopy at a free-electron laser (FEL) to follow transient photoelectron momentum maps of excited states of a bilayer pentacene film on Ag(110). We use optical pump and FEL probe pulses by keeping FEL source conditions to minimize space charge effects and radiation damage. From the momentum microscopy signal, we obtain time-dependent momentum maps of the excited-state dynamics of both pentacene layers separately. In a combined experimental and theoretical study, we interpret the observed signal for the bottom layer as resulting from the charge redistribution between the molecule and the substrate induced by excitation. We identify that the dynamics of the top pentacene layer resembles excited-state molecular dynamics.

Nat Commun volume 13, Article number: 2741 (2022)

A. Roychowdhury, T.K. Dalui, P.K. Ghose, S.K. Mahatha, N. Wind, K. Rossnagel, S. Majumdar, S. Giri

We report magnetoresistance and magnetization studies of single-crystal GaGeTe, which has been proposed as a Van der Waals material. Semi-metallic character is observed in the temperature (T) variation of resistivity (ρ), following ρ(T) ​∝ ​T² ​at low temperature with a slope compatible with the usual spin-fluctuating system. Magnetoresistance (MR) at 2 ​K is negative and strongly dependent on the direction of the magnetic field (H) with respect to the crystallographic c-axis. MR changes sign with increasing temperature above ∼ 100 ​K, when H is applied along the c-axis. Hall measurements indicate the p-type conductivity with a considerable hole concentration of ∼ 8.7 ​× ​10¹⁹ ​cm⁻³. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy reproduces the reported results and confirms a peculiar dispersion shape of the hole-like band at the bulk high-symmetry T point near the Fermi energy indicating band inversion. Magnetic hysteresis measurement at 2 ​K shows diamagnetic behaviour at high-H, whereas a ferromagnetic (FM)-like magnetic hysteresis loop is observed at low-H in between ​± ​4 ​kOe. The FM component disappears close to 3 ​K. Signature of spin-fluctuation in ρ(T), negative MR, and low-T FM component without 3d or 4f impurities in GaGeTe is attractive for the fundamental interest.

Journal of Solid State Chemistry, Volume 312, 123106 (2022)

Marcus Seidel, Federico Pressacco, Oender Akcaalan, Thomas Binhammer, John Darvill,Nagitha Ekanayake, Maik Frede, Uwe Grosse-Wortmann, Michael Heber,Christoph M. Heyl, Dmytro Kutnyakhov, Chen Li, Christian Mohr, Jost Müller,Oliver Puncken, Harald Redlin, Nora Schirmel, Sebastian Schulz, Angad Swiderski,Hamed Tavakol, Henrik Tünnermann, Caterina Vidoli, Lukas Wenthaus, Nils Wind,Lutz Winkelmann, Bastian Manschwetus, and Ingmar Hartl

The Free-Electron Laser (FEL) FLASH offers the worldwide still unique capability to study ultrafast processes with high-flux, high-repetition rate extreme ultraviolet, and soft X-ray pulses. The vast majority of experiments at FLASH are of pump–probe type. Many of them rely on optical ultrafast lasers. Here, a novel FEL facility laser is reported which combines high average power output from Yb:YAG amplifiers with spectral broadening in a Herriott-type multipass cell and subsequent pulse compression to sub-100-fs durations. Compared to other facility lasers employing optical parametric amplification, the new system comes with significantly improved noise figures, compactness, simplicity, and power efficiency. Like FLASH, the optical laser operates with 10-Hz burst repetition rate. The bursts consist of 800-μs long trains of up to 800 ultrashort pulses being synchronized to the FEL with femtosecond precision. In the experimental chamber, pulses with up to 50-μJ energy, 60-fs full-width half-maximum duration and 1-MHz rate at 1.03-μm wavelength are available and can be adjusted by computer-control. Moreover, nonlinear polarization rotation is implemented to improve laser pulse contrast. First cross-correlation measurements with the FEL at the plane-grating monochromator photon beamline are demonstrated, exhibiting the suitability of the laser for user experiments at FLASH.

Laser Photonics Rev. 16, 2100268 (2022)

Davide Curcio et al.

We show that the presence of a transiently excited hot electron gas in graphene leads to a substantial broadening of the C 1s line probed by time-resolved x-ray photoemission spectroscopy. The broadening is found to be caused by an exchange of energy and momentum between the photoemitted core electron and the hot electron gas, rather than by vibrational excitations. This interpretation is supported by a quantitative line-shape analysis that accounts for the presence of the excited electrons. Fitting the spectra to this model directly yields the electronic temperature of the system, in good agreement with electronic temperature values obtained from valence band data. Furthermore, we show how the momentum change of the outgoing core electrons leads to a detectable but very small change in the time-resolved photoelectron diffraction pattern and to a nearly complete elimination of the core level binding energy variation associated with the presence of a narrow σ band in the C 1s state.

Phys. Rev. B 104, L161104 (2021)

F. Pressacco et al.

Femtosecond light-induced phase transitions between different macroscopic orders provide the possibility to tune the functional properties of condensed matter on ultrafast timescales. In first-order phase transitions, transient non-equilibrium phases and inherent phase coexistence often preclude non-ambiguous detection of transition precursors and their temporal onset. Here, we present a study combining time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy and ab-initio electron dynamics calculations elucidating the transient subpicosecond processes governing the photoinduced generation of ferromagnetic order in antiferromagnetic FeRh. The transient photoemission spectra are accounted for by assuming that not only the occupation of electronic states is modified during the photoexcitation process. Instead, the photo-generated non-thermal distribution of electrons modifies the electronic band structure. The ferromagnetic phase of FeRh, characterized by a minority band near the Fermi energy, is established 350 ± 30 fs after the laser excitation. Ab-initio calculations indicate that the phase transition is initiated by a photoinduced Rh-to-Fe charge transfer.

Nat Commun 12, 5088 (2021)

G. Schönhense et. al.

The performance of time-resolved photoemission experiments at fs-pulsed photon sources is ultimately limited by the e–e Coulomb interaction, downgrading energy and momentum resolution. Here, we present an approach to effectively suppress space-charge artifacts in momentum microscopes and photoemission microscopes. A retarding electrostatic field generated by a special objective lens repels slow electrons, retaining the k-image of the fast photoelectrons. The suppression of space-charge effects scales with the ratio of the photoelectron velocities of fast and slow electrons. Fields in the range from −20 to −1100 V/mm for E_kin = 100 eV to 4 keV direct secondaries and pump-induced slow electrons back to the sample surface. Ray tracing simulations reveal that this happens within the first 40 to 3 μm above the sample surface for E_kin = 100 eV to 4 keV. An optimized front-lens design allows switching between the conventional accelerating and the new retarding mode. Time-resolved experiments at E_kin = 107 eV using fs extreme ultraviolet probe pulses from the free-electron laser FLASH reveal that the width of the Fermi edge increases by just 30 meV at an incident pump fluence of 22 mJ/cm2 (retarding field −21 V/mm). For an accelerating field of +2 kV/mm and a pump fluence of only 5 mJ/cm2, it increases by 0.5 eV (pump wavelength 1030 nm). At the given conditions, the suppression mode permits increasing the slow-electron yield by three to four orders of magnitude. The feasibility of the method at high energies is demonstrated without a pump beam at E_kin = 3830 eV using hard x rays from the storage ring PETRA III. The approach opens up a previously inaccessible regime of pump fluences for photoemission experiments.

Review of Scientific Instruments 92, 053703 (2021)

T. K. Dalui, P. K. Ghose, S. Majumdar, S. K. Mahatha, F. Diekmann, K. Rossnagel, R. Tomar, S. Chakraverty, A. Berlie, and S. Giri

Magnetic transition element doping in topological insulators, which breaks the time-reversal symmetry, gives rise to the diverse range of exotic consequences, though proper understanding of the magnetic order has rarely been attempted by using any microscopic experiments. We report the occurrence of the magnetic order in (Sb_0.95Cr_0.05)2Te₃ using the muon spin relaxation studies. The asymmetry curve at low temperature (T) shows an evidence of a damped oscillation, providing a clue about the internal magnetic field (H_int), which follows H_int(T)=H_int(0)[1−T/T_C]^β with ordering temperature T_C≈6.1 K and critical exponent β≈0.22. The critical exponent is close to the two-dimensional XY-type interaction. The magnetization curves at low T exhibit a ferromagnetic behavior at low field (H) and the de Haas–van Alphen (dHvA) effect at high H. The analysis of the dHvA oscillation proposes the charge carrier that acts like a massive Dirac fermion. The Berry phase, as obtained from the Landau-level fan diagram, suggests a surface state gap at the Dirac point. The complex electronic structure is discussed by correlating the magnetic order attributed to the Cr doping in Sb₂Te₃.

Phys. Rev. B 103, 064428 (2021)

R. Patrick Xian , Yves acremann, Steinn Y. agustsson, Maciej Dendzik, Kevin Bühlmann, Davide Curcio, Dmytro Kutnyakhov, Federico Pressacco, Michael Heber, Shuo Dong, Tommaso Pincelli, Jure Demsar, Wilfried Wurth, Philip Hofmann, Martin Wolf, Markus Scheidgen, Laurenz Rettig & Ralph Ernstorfer

Characterization of the electronic band structure of solid state materials is routinely performed using photoemission spectroscopy. Recent advancements in short-wavelength light sources and electron detectors give rise to multidimensional photoemission spectroscopy, allowing parallel measurements of the electron spectral function simultaneously in energy, two momentum components and additional physical parameters with single-event detection capability. Efficient processing of the photoelectron event streams at a rate of up to tens of megabytes per second will enable rapid band mapping for materials characterization. We describe an open-source workflow that allows user interaction with billion-count single-electron events in photoemission band mapping experiments, compatible with beamlines at 3rd and 4rd generation light sources and table-top laser-based setups. The workflow offers an end-to-end recipe from distributed operations on single-event data to structured formats for downstream scientific tasks and storage to materials science database integration. Both the workflow and processed data can be archived for reuse, providing the infrastructure for documenting the provenance and lineage of photoemission data for future high-throughput experiments.

Sci Data 7, 442 (2020)

Maciej Dendzik, R. Patrick Xian, Enrico Perfetto, Davide Sangalli, Dmytro Kutnyakhov, Shuo Dong, Samuel Beaulieu, Tommaso Pincelli, Federico Pressacco, Davide Curcio, Steinn Ymir Agustsson, Michael Heber, Jasper Hauer, Wilfried Wurth, Günter Brenner, Yves Acremann, Philip Hofmann, Martin Wolf, Andrea Marini, Gianluca Stefanucci, Laurenz Rettig, and Ralph Ernstorfer

Time-resolved soft-x-ray photoemission spectroscopy is used to simultaneously measure the ultrafast dynamics of core-level spectral functions and excited states upon excitation of excitons in WSe₂. We present a many-body approximation for the Green’s function, which excellently describes the transient core-hole spectral function. The relative dynamics of excited-state signal and core levels clearly show a delayed core-hole renormalization due to screening by excited quasifree carriers resulting from an excitonic Mott transition. These findings establish time-resolved core-level photoelectron spectroscopy as a sensitive probe of subtle electronic many-body interactions and ultrafast electronic phase transitions.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 125, 096401 (2020)

D. Kutnyakhov, R. P. Xian, M. Dendzik, M. Heber, F. Pressacco, S. Y. Agustsson, L. Wenthaus, H. Meyer, S. Gieschen, G. Mercurio, A. Benz, K. Bühlman, S. Däster, R. Gort, D. Curcio, K. Volckaert, M. Bianchi, Ch. Sanders, J. A. Miwa, S. Ulstrup, A. Oelsner, C. Tusche, Y.-J. Chen, D. Vasilyev, K. Medjanik, G. Brenner, S. Dziarzhytski, H. Redlin, B. Manschwetus, S. Dong, J. Hauer, L. Rettig, F. Diekmann, K. Rossnagel, J. Demsar, H.-J. Elmers, Ph. Hofmann, R. Ernstorfer, G. Schönhense, Y. Acremann, and W. Wurth

Time-resolved photoemission with ultrafast pump and probe pulses is an emerging technique with wide application potential. Real-time recording of nonequilibrium electronic processes, transient states in chemical reactions, or the interplay of electronic and structural dynamics offers fascinating opportunities for future research. Combining valence-band and core-level spectroscopy with photoelectron diffraction for electronic, chemical, and structural analyses requires few 10 fs soft X-ray pulses with some 10 meV spectral resolution, which are currently available at high repetition rate free-electron lasers. We have constructed and optimized a versatile setup commissioned at FLASH/PG2 that combines free-electron laser capabilities together with a multidimensional recording scheme for photoemission studies. We use a full-field imaging momentum microscope with time-of-flight energy recording as the detector for mapping of 3D band structures in (k_x, k_y, E) parameter space with unprecedented efficiency. Our instrument can image full surface Brillouin zones with up to 7 Å⁻¹ diameter in a binding-energy range of several eV, resolving about 2.5 × 10⁵ data voxels simultaneously. Using the ultrafast excited state dynamics in the van der Waals semiconductor WSe₂ measured at photon energies of 36.5 eV and 109.5 eV, we demonstrate an experimental energy resolution of 130 meV, a momentum resolution of 0.06 Å⁻¹, and a system response function of 150 fs.

Rev. Sci. Instr. 91, 013109 (2020)

M. Hollstein, K. Mertens, S. Klumpp, N. Gerken, S. Palutke, I. Baev, G. Brenner, S. Dziarzhytski, M. Meyer, W. Wurth, D. Pfannkuche1, M. Martins

We present studies on intra-molecular charge redistribution in iodine containing molecules upon iodine-4d photoionization. For this, we employed an XUV-pump-XUV-probe scheme based on time-delayed femtosecond pulses delivered by the free-electron laser at DESY in Hamburg (FLASH). The experimental results show delay dependent and molecule-specific iodine charge state distributions that arise upon multiple iodine-4d photoionization. Using the example of CH₃I and CH₂I₂, we compare the delay-dependent yields of I³⁺. We model the involved processes using advanced ab initio electronic structure calculations which include electron correlations combined with a classical model of the nuclear motion. The qualitative agreement of our model with the experimental results allows us to relate the observed, strongly molecule-specific efficiencies of the intra-molecular charge rearrangement not only to molecule-specific fragmentation timescales but also to molecule-specific electronic structure and molecular environment.

New J.Phys 21, 033017 (2019)

M. Malvestuto, A. Caretta, B. Casarin, R. Ciprian, M. Dell'Angela, S. Laterza, Y. Chuang, W. Wurth, A. Revcolevschi, L. A. Wray, and F. Parmigiani

Using high resolution resonant inelastic x-ray scattering measurements, we have observed that the orbital excitations of the quasi-1D spin chain compound CuGeO3 has nontrivial and noticeable orbital mixing effects from 3d valence spin-orbit coupling. In particular, the SOC leads to a significant correction of d_z2 state, which has a direct interplay with the low energy physics of cuprates. Guided by atomic multiplet based modeling, our results strongly support a 3d spin-orbit mixing scenario and explore in detail the nature of these excitations.

Phys. Rev. B, 99, 115120 (2019)

O. Fedchenko, K. Medjanik, S. Chernov, D. Kutnyakhov, M. Ellguth, A. Oelsner, B. Schönhense, T.R.F. Peixoto, P. Lutz, C.-H. Min , F. Reinert, S. Däster, Y. Acremann, J. Viefhaus, W. Wurth, J. Braun, J. Minár, H.Ebert, H.J. Elmers, and G. Schönhense

Photoemission-intensity distributions I _RCP/LCP (E _B , k ) measured for right- and left-circularly polarized soft x-rays revealed a large circular dichroism in angular distribution (CDAD) in the 4D parameter space (E _B binding energy, k momentum vector). Full-field k-imaging combined with time-of-flight energy recording at a high-brilliance soft x-ray beamline allowed mapping the CDAD in the bulk Brillouin zone of tungsten and the entire d-band complex within a few hours. CDAD-asymmetries are very high (up to 90%), persist throughout the whole photon-energy range (300–1300 eV) and show a pronounced dependence on momentum k and binding energy E _B, visualized as movies or sequences of cuts through the 4D object. One-step photoemission calculations for the same photon energies show fair agreement with the measured results. In addition to the requirement of a 'handed' experimental geometry, known from previous experiments on adsorbates and surface states, we find an anti-symmetric behavior of the CDAD with respect to two bulk mirror planes. A new symmetry condition along the perpendicular momentum k_z makes CDAD a valuable tool for an unambiguous identification of high-symmetry planes in direct transitions in the periodic zone scheme. Technically, the method provides a circular polarimeter for soft, tender and hard x-rays.

New J. Phys., 21, 013017 (2019)

A. Caretta, M. Dell'Angela, Y. Chuang, A. M. Kalashnikova, R. V. Pisarev, D. Bossini, F. Hieke, W. Wurth, B. Casarin, R. Ciprian, F. Parmigiani, S. Wexler, L. A. Wray, M. Malvestuto

We report a high-resolution resonant inelastic extreme ultraviolet (EUV) scattering study of the quantum Heisenberg antiferromagnet KCoF₃. By tuning the EUV photon energy to the cobalt M₂₃ edge, a complete set of low-energy 3d spin-orbital excitations is revealed. These low-lying electronic excitations are modeled using an extended multiplet-based mean-field calculation to identify the roles of lattice and magnetic degrees of freedom in modifying the resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) spectral line shape. We have demonstrated that the temperature dependence of RIXS features upon the antiferromagnetic ordering transition enables us to probe the energetics of short-range spin correlations in this material.

Phys. Rev. B 96, 184420 (2017)

M. Dell’Angela, F. Hieke, M. Malvestuto, L. Sturari, S. Bajt, I. V. Kozhevnikov, J. Ratanapreechachai, A. Caretta, B. Casarin, F. Glerean, A. M. Kalashnikova, R. V. Pisarev, Y.-D. Chuang, G. Manzoni, F. Cilento, R. Mincigrucci, A. Simoncig, E. Principi, C. Masciovecchio, L. Raimondi, N. Mahne, C. Svetina, M. Zangrando, R. Passuello, G. Gaio, M. Prica, M. Scarcia, G. Kourousias, R. Borghes, L. Giannessi, W. Wurth and F. Parmigiani

In the past few years, we have been witnessing an increased interest for studying materials properties under non-equilibrium conditions. Several well established spectroscopies for experiments in the energy domain have been successfully adapted to the time domain with sub-picosecond time resolution. Here we show the realization of high resolution resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) with a stable ultrashort X-ray source such as an externally seeded free electron laser (FEL). We have designed and constructed a RIXS experimental endstation that allowed us to successfully measure the d-d excitations in KCoF₃ single crystals at the cobalt M_2,3-edge at FERMI FEL (Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste, Italy). The FEL-RIXS spectra show an excellent agreement with the ones obtained from the same samples at the MERIXS endstation of the MERLIN beamline at the Advanced Light Source storage ring (Berkeley, USA). We established experimental protocols for performing time resolved RIXS experiments at a FEL source to avoid X ray-induced sample damage, while retaining comparable acquisition time to the synchrotron based measurements. Finally, we measured and modelled the influence of the FEL mixed electromagnetic modes, also present in externally seeded FELs, and the beam transport with ~120 meV experimental resolution achieved in the presented RIXS setup.

Scientific Reports 6, 38796 (2016)

A. Fognini, G. Salvatella, T.U. Michlmayr, C. Wetli, U. Ramsperger, T. Bähler, F. Sorgenfrei, M. Beye, A. Eschenlohr, N. Pontius, C. Stamm, F. Hieke, M. Dell‘Angela, S. de Jong, R. Kukreja, N. Gerasimova, V. Rybnikov, H. Redlin, J. Raabe, W. Wurth et.

Spin-resolved photoemission is one of the most direct ways of measuring the magnetization of a ferromagnet. If all valence band electrons contribute, the measured average spin polarization is proportional to the magnetization. This is even the case if electronic excitations are present, and thus is of particular interest for studying the response of the magnetization to a pump laser pulse. Here, we demonstrate the feasibility of ultrafast spin-resolved photoemission using free electron laser (FEL) radiation and investigate the effect of space charge on the detected spin polarization. The sample is exposed to the radiation of the FEL FLASH in Hamburg. Surprisingly, the measured spin polarization depends on the fluence of the FEL radiation: a higher FEL fluence reduces the measured spin polarization. Space-charge simulations can explain this effect. These findings have consequences for future spin-polarized photoemission experiments using pulsed photon sources.

New Journal of Physics 16, 043031 (2014)

A. Fognini, T. U. Michlmayr, G. Salvatella, C. Wetli, U. Ramsperger, T. Bähler, F.Sorgenfrei, M. Beye, A. Eschenlohr, N. Pontius, C. Stamm, F. Hieke, M. Dell'Angela, S. de Jong, R. Kukreja, N. Gerasimova, V. Rybnikov, H. Redlin, W. Wurth, et. al

Surprisingly, if a ferromagnet is exposed to an ultrafast laser pulse, its apparent magnetization is reduced within less than a picosecond. Up to now, the total magnetization, i.e., the average spin polarization of the whole valence band, was not detectable on a sub-picosecond time scale. Here, we present experimental data, confirming the ultrafast reduction of the total magnetization. Soft x-ray pulses from the free electron laser in Hamburg (FLASH) extract polarized cascade photoelectrons from an iron layer excited by a femtosecond laser pulse. The spin polarization of the emitted electrons is detected by a Mott spin polarimeter.

Applied Physics Letters 104, 032402 (2014)

S. de Jong, R. Kukreja, C. Trabant, N. Pontius, C.F. Chang, T. Kachel, M. Beye, F. Sorgenfrei, C. H. Back, B. Bräuer, W.F. Schlotter, J.J. Turner, O. Krupin, M. Doehler, D. Zhu, M.A. Hossain, W. Wurth, D. Fausti, F. Novelli, M. Esposito, et. al

As the oldest known magnetic material, magnetite (Fe3O4) has fascinated mankind for millennia. As the first oxide in which a relationship between electrical conductivity and fluctuating/localized electronic order was shown, magnetite represents a model system for understanding correlated oxides in general. Nevertheless, the exact mechanism of the insulator–metal, or Verwey, transition has long remained inaccessible. Recently, three-Fe-site lattice distortions called trimerons were identified as the characteristic building blocks of the low-temperature insulating electronically ordered phase9. Here we investigate the Verwey transition with pump–probe X-ray diffraction and optical reflectivity techniques, and show how trimerons become mobile across the insulator–metal transition. We find this to be a two-step process. After an initial 300 fs destruction of individual trimerons, phase separation occurs on a 1.5±0.2 ps timescale to yield residual insulating and metallic regions. This work establishes the speed limit for switching in future oxide electronics.

Nature Materials 12, 882 (2013)

Wonhyuk Jo, Stephan Stern, Fabian Westermeier, Rustam Rysov, Matthias Riepp, Julian Schmehr, Jörn Lange, Julian Becker, Michael Sprung, Torsten Laurus, Heinz Graafsma, Irina Lokteva, Gerhard Grübel, and Wojciech Roseker

The ability of pulsed nature of synchrotron radiation opens up the possibility of studying microsecond dynamics in complex materials via speckle-based techniques. Here, we present the study of measuring the dynamics of a colloidal system by combining single and multiple X-ray pulses of a storage ring. In addition, we apply speckle correlation techniques at various pulse patterns to collect correlation functions from nanoseconds to milliseconds. The obtained sample dynamics from all correlation techniques at different pulse patterns are in very good agreement with the expected dynamics of Brownian motions of silica nanoparticles in water. Our study will pave the way for future pulsed X-ray investigations at various synchrotron X-ray sources using individual X-ray pulse patterns.

Opt. Express 31, 3315-3324 (2023)

Nanna Zhou Hagström et. al.

The advent of X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) has revolutionized fundamental science, from atomic to condensed matter physics, from chemistry to biology, giving researchers access to X-rays with unprecedented brightness, coherence and pulse duration. All XFEL facilities built until recently provided X-ray pulses at a relatively low repetition rate, with limited data statistics. Here, results from the first megahertz-repetition-rate X-ray scattering experiments at the Spectroscopy and Coherent Scattering (SCS) instrument of the European XFEL are presented. The experimental capabilities that the SCS instrument offers, resulting from the operation at megahertz repetition rates and the availability of the novel DSSC 2D imaging detector, are illustrated. Time-resolved magnetic X-ray scattering and holographic imaging experiments in solid state samples were chosen as representative, providing an ideal test-bed for operation at megahertz rates. Our results are relevant and applicable to any other non-destructive XFEL experiments in the soft X-ray range.

J. Synchrotron Rad. 29, 1454-1464 (2022)

M. Riepp et al.

The availability of sub 100 fs short and highly intense free-electron laser (FEL) pulses allows for new insights in laser-induced ultrafast demagnetization (LID) of ferromagnetic thin films on nanometer length scales. We designed a pair of in-vacuum Helmholtz coils, providing pulsed magnetic fields up to µ₀H_z = ±45 mT, for time-resolved experiments at FEL sources in transmission geometry. We report on the implementation of the Helmholtz coils in an optical-pump–resonant-magnetic-scattering (tr-XRMS) experiment at the FEL FERMI (Elettra, Trieste) to study LID in different magnetic domain networks. We discuss the limitations for multi-shot measurements, that rely on the full reversibility of the demagnetization process in-between two pump–probe events, and emphasize the importance of reference–pump–probe schemes, especially in tr-XRMS experiments that employ external H_z fields.

J. Phys.: Conf. Ser. 2380 012134 (2022)

W. Roseker et al.

We report on a Fourier transform holography study, employing hard X-ray energies at a 3rd generation storage ring. Nano-structures of various sizes and shapes have been measured in ultra small angle x-ray scattering configuration reaching a resolution in the holographic reconstructions of about 50 nm. Reliable holograms have been obtained with 6.9×10⁶ incident photons. Our results provide an important step forward towards routine split-pulse Fourier transform holography measurements at FEL sources and 4th generation ultralow-emittance sources.

J. Phys.: Conf. Ser. 2380 012118 (2022)

L. Müller et al.

Free-electron lasers (FELs) provide unique possibilities in investigating matter down to femtosecond time and nanometer length scales, as well as in the regime of non-linear light-matter interaction. Due to the nature of FEL sources, the produced beam is significantly more unstable than beams produced by 3^rd generation synchrotrons. As a result, pulse-resolved normalization of measurement data becomes essential and can be challenging. The intensity monitors permanently installed at a facility might indeed accurately measure the pulse intensities at a certain point of the beamline, but cannot precisely normalize experimental data. For example the impact of pointing instabilities and hence different clipping of the beam downstream on the way to the actual experiment is not reflected in the intensity measurement. Here, we show how the integral intensity of the FEL beam transmitted through the sample can be measured by photodiodes providing a proper normalization of measurement data.

J. Phys.: Conf. Ser. 2380 012081 (2022)

Kapcia, K.J., Tkachenko, V., Capotondi, F. et al.

In this work, we report on modeling results obtained with our recently developed simulation tool enabling nanoscopic description of electronic processes in X-ray irradiated ferromagnetic materials. With this tool, we have studied the response of Co/Pt multilayer system irradiated by an ultrafast extreme ultraviolet pulse at the M-edge of Co (photon energy ~60 eV). It was previously investigated experimentally at the FERMI free-electron-laser facility, using the magnetic small-angle X-ray scattering technique. Our simulations show that the magnetic scattering signal from cobalt decreases on femtosecond timescales due to electronic excitation, relaxation, and transport processes both in the cobalt and in the platinum layers, following the trend observed in the experimental data. The confirmation of the predominant role of electronic processes for X-ray induced demagnetization in the regime below the structural damage threshold is a step toward quantitative control and manipulation of X-ray induced magnetic processes on femtosecond timescales.

npj Comput Mater 8, 212 (2022)

Gaetano Campi, Antonio Bianconi, Boby Joseph, Shrawan Kr Mishra, Leonard Müller, Alexey Zozulya, Agustinus Agung Nugroho, Sujoy Roy, Michael Sprung & Alessandro Ricci

While stripe phases with broken rotational symmetry of charge density are known to emerge in doped strongly correlated perovskites, the dynamics and heterogeneity of spatial ordering remain elusive. Here we shed light on the temperature dependent lattice motion and the spatial nanoscale phase separation of charge density wave order in the archetypal striped phase in La_2−xSr_xNiO_4+y (LSNO) perovskite using X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS) joint with scanning micro X-ray diffraction (SµXRD). While it is known that the CDW in 1/8 doped cuprates shows a remarkable stability we report the CDW motion dynamics by XPCS in nickelates with an anomalous quantum glass regime at low temperature, T < 65 K, and the expected thermal melting at higher temperature 65 < T < 120 K. The nanoscale CDW puddles with a shorter correlation length are more mobile than CDW puddles with a longer correlation length. The direct imaging of nanoscale spatial inhomogeneity of CDW by scanning micro X-ray diffraction (SµXRD) shows a nanoscale landscape of percolating short range dynamic CDW puddles competing with large quasi-static CDW puddles giving rise to a novel form of nanoscale phase separation of the incommensurate stripes order landscape.

Sci Rep 12, 15964 (2022)

Wonhyuk Jo, Rustam Rysov, Fabian Westermeier, Michael Walther, Leonard Müller, André Philippi-Kobs, Matthias Riepp, Simon Marotzke, Irina Lokteva, Michael Sprung, Gerhard Grübel, and Wojciech Roseker

Three-dimensional photon correlation spectroscopy (3D PCS) is a well-known technique developed to suppress multiple scattering contributions in correlation functions, which are inevitably involved when an optical laser is employed to investigate dynamics in a turbid system. Here, we demonstrate a proof-of-principle study of 3D PCS in the hard X-ray regime. We employ an X-ray optical cross-correlator to measure the dynamics of silica colloidal nanoparticles dispersed in polypropylene glycol. The obtained cross correlation functions show very good agreement with auto-correlation measurements. This demonstration provides the foundation for X-ray speckle-based studies of very densely packed soft matter systems.

Opt. Lett. 47, 293-296 (2022)

Alessandro Ricci, Nicola Poccia, Gaetano Campi, Shrawan Mishra, Leonard Müller, Boby Joseph, Bo Shi, Alexey Zozulya, Marcel Buchholz, Christoph Trabant, James C. T. Lee, Jens Viefhaus, Jeroen B. Goedkoop, Agustinus Agung Nugroho, Markus Braden, Sujoy Roy, Michael Sprung, and Christian Schüßler-Langeheine

We study the temporal stability of stripe-type spin order in a layered nickelate with x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy and observe fluctuations on timescales of tens of minutes over a wide temperature range. These fluctuations show an anomalous temperature dependence: they slow down at intermediate temperatures and speed up on both heating and cooling. This behavior appears to be directly connected with spatial correlations: stripes fluctuate slowly when stripe correlation lengths are large and become faster when spatial correlations decrease. A low-temperature decay of nickelate stripe correlations, reminiscent of what occurs in cuprates as a result of a competition between stripes and superconductivity, hence occurs via loss of both spatial and temporal correlations.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 057001 (2021)

Wonhyuk Jo, Fabian Westermeier, Rustam Rysov, Olaf Leupold, Florian Schulz, Steffen Tober, Verena Markmann, Michael Sprung, Allesandro Ricci, Torsten Laurus, Allahgholi Aschkan, Alexander Klyuev, Ulrich Trunk, Heinz Graafsma, Gerhard Grübel, and Wojciech Roseker

X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS) is a routine technique to study slow dynamics in complex systems at storage-ring sources. Achieving nanosecond time resolution with the conventional XPCS technique is, however, still an experimentally challenging task requiring fast detectors and sufficient photon flux. Here, the result of a nanosecond XPCS study of fast colloidal dynamics is shown by employing an adaptive gain integrating pixel detector (AGIPD) operated at frame rates of the intrinsic pulse structure of the storage ring. Correlation functions from single-pulse speckle patterns with the shortest correlation time of 192 ns have been calculated. These studies provide an important step towards routine fast XPCS studies at storage rings.

IUCrJ (2021). 8

Kai Bagschik, Michael Schneider, Jochen Wagner, Ralph Buss, Matthias Riepp, Andre Philippi-Kobs, Leonard Müller, Wojciech Roseker, Florian Trinter, Moritz Hoesch, Jens Viefhaus, Stefan Eisebitt, Gerhard Grübel, Hans Peter Oepen, and Robert Frömter

Direct 2D spatial-coherence measurements are increasingly gaining importance at synchrotron beamlines, especially due to present and future upgrades of synchrotron facilities to diffraction-limited storage rings. We present a method to determine the 2D spatial coherence of synchrotron radiation in a direct and particularly simple way by using the Fourier-analysis method in conjunction with curved gratings. Direct photon-beam monitoring provided by a curved grating circumvents the otherwise necessary separate determination of the illuminating intensity distribution required for the Fourier-analysis method. Hence, combining these two methods allows for time-resolved spatial-coherence measurements. As a consequence, spatial-coherence degradation effects caused by beamline optics vibrations, which is one of the key issues of state-of-the-art X-ray imaging and scattering beamlines, can be identified and analyzed.

Opt. Lett. 45(19), 5591-5594 (2020)

K. Chen, D. Lott, A. Philippi-Kobs, M. Weigand, C. Luo, F. Radu

Owing to the experimental discovery of magnetic skyrmions stabilized by the Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya and/or dipolar interactions in thin films, there is a recent upsurge of interest in magnetic skyrmions with antiferromagnetic spins in order to overcome the fundamental limitations inherent with skyrmions in ferromagnetic materials. Here, we report on the observation of compact ferrimagnetic skyrmions for the class of amorphous alloys consisting of 4f rare-earth and 3d transition-metal elements with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, using a DyCo₃ film, that are identified by combining X-ray magnetic scattering, scanning transmission X-ray microscopy, and Hall transport technique. These skyrmions, with antiparallel aligned Dy and Co magnetic moments and a characteristic core radius of about 40 nm, are formed during the nucleation and annihilation of the magnetic maze-like domain pattern exhibiting a topological Hall effect contribution. Our findings provide a promising route for fundamental research in the field of ferrimagnetic/antiferromagnetic spintronics towards practical applications.

Nanoscale 12, 18137 (2020)

Wojciech Roseker, Sooheyong Lee, Michael Walther, Felix Lehmkühler, Birgit Hankiewicz, Rustam Rysov, Stephan O. Hruszkewycz, G. Brian Stephenson, Mark Sutton, Paul H. Fuoss, Marcin Sikorski, Aymeric Robert, Sanghoon Song & Gerhard Grübel

The ability to deliver two coherent X-ray pulses with precise time-delays ranging from a few femtoseconds to nanoseconds enables critical capabilities of probing ultra-fast phenomena in condensed matter systems at X-ray free electron laser (FEL) sources. Recent progress made in the hard X-ray split-and-delay optics developments now brings a very promising prospect for resolving atomic-scale motions that were not accessible by previous time-resolved techniques. Here, we report on characterizing the spatial and temporal coherence properties of the hard X-ray FEL beam after propagating through split-and-delay optics. Speckle contrast analysis of small-angle scattering measurements from nanoparticles reveals well-preserved transverse coherence of the beam. Measuring intensity fluctuations from successive X-ray pulses also reveals that only single or double temporal modes remain in the transmitted beam, corresponding to nearly Fourier transform limited pulses.

Scientific Reports (2020) 10:5054 |

Kai Bagschik, Jochen Wagner, Ralph Buß, Matthias Riepp, André Philippi-Kobs, Leonard Müller, Jens Buck, Florian Trinter, Frank Scholz, Jörn Seltmann, Moritz Hoesch, Jens Viefhaus, Gerhard Grübel, Hans Peter Oepen, and Robert Frömter

We present a systematic 2D spatial-coherence analysis of the soft-X-ray beamline P04 at PETRA III for various beamline configurations. The influence of two different beam-defining apertures on the spatial coherence properties of the beam is discussed and optimal conditions for coherence-based experiments are found. A significant degradation of the spatial coherence in the vertical direction has been measured and sources of this degradation are identified and discussed. The Fourier-analysis method, which gives fast and simple access to the 2D spatial coherence function of the X-ray beam, is used for the experiment. Here, we exploit the charge scattering of a disordered nanodot sample allowing the use of arbitrary X-ray photon energies with this method.

Opt. Express 28(5), 7282-7300 (2020)

K. Chen, A. Philippi-Kobs, V. Lauter, A. Vorobiev, E. Dyadkina, V. Yu. Yakovchuk, S. Stolyar, D. Lott

Chiral magnetism that manifests in the existence of skyrmions or chiral domain walls offers an alternative way for creating anisotropies in magnetic materials that might have large potential for application in future spintronic devices. Here we show experimental evidence for an alternative type of in-plane exchange-bias effect present at room temperature that is created from a chiral 90∘ domain wall at the interface of a ferrimagnetic-ferromagnetic Dy-Co/Ni-Fe bilayer system. The chiral interfacial domain wall forms due to the exchange coupling of Ni-Fe and Dy-Co at the interface and the presence of Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in the Dy-Co layer. As a consequence of the preferred chirality of the interfacial domain wall, the sign of the exchange-bias effect can be reversed by changing the perpendicular orientation of the Dy-Co magnetization. The chirality-created tunable exchange bias in Dy-Co/Ni-Fe is very robust against high in-plane magnetic fields (μ0H≤6T) and does not show any aging effects. Therefore, it overcomes the limitations of conventional exchange-bias systems.

Phys. Rev. Applied 12, 024047 (2019)

Gaetano Campi, Nicola Poccia, Boby Joseph, Antonio Bianconi, Shrawan Mishra, James Lee, Sujoy Roy, Agustinus Agung Nugroho, Marcel Buchholz, Markus Braden, Christoph Trabant, Alexey Zozulya, Leonard Müller, Jens Viefhaus, Christian Schüßler-Langeheine 9, Michael Sprung and Alessandro Ricci 

In several strongly correlated electron systems, the short range ordering of defects, charge and local lattice distortions are found to show complex inhomogeneous spatial distributions. There is growing evidence that such inhomogeneity plays a fundamental role in unique functionality of quantum complex materials. La1.72Sr0.28NiO4 is a prototypical strongly correlated perovskite showing spin stripes order. In this work we present the spatial distribution of the spin order inhomogeneity by applying micro X-ray diffraction to La1.72Sr0.28NiO4, mapping the spin-density-wave order below the 120 K onset temperature. We find that the spin-density-wave order shows the formation of nanoscale puddles with large spatial fluctuations. The nano-puddle density changes on the microscopic scale forming a multiscale phase separation extending from nanoscale to micron scale with scale-free distribution. Indeed spin-density-wave striped puddles are disconnected by spatial regions with negligible spin-density-wave order. The present work highlights the complex spatial nanoscale phase separation of spin stripes in nickelate perovskites and opens new perspectives of local spin order control by strain.

Condens. Matter 2019, 4(3), 77

Roseker, W. ; Lee, S. ; Walther, M. ; Rysov, R. ; Sprung, M. ; Gruebel, G.

We present a novel experimental setup for performing a precise pre-alignment of a hard X-ray split-and-delay unit based on low coherence light interferometry and high-precision penta-prisms. A split-and-delay unit is a sophisticated perfect crystal-optics device that splits an incoming X-ray pulse into two sub-pulses and generates a controlled time-delay between them. While the availability of a split-and-delay system will make ultrafast time-correlation and X-ray pump-probe experiments possible at free-electron lasers, its alignment process can be very tedious and time-consuming due to its complex construction. By implementing our experimental setup at beamline P10 of PETRA III, we were able to reduce the time of alignment to less than 3 h. We also propose an alternate method for finding the zero-time delay crossing without the use of X-rays or pulsed laser sources. The successful demonstration of this method brings prospect for operating the split-and-delay systems under alignment-time-critical environments such as X-ray free electron laser facilities.

Review of scientific instruments 90(4), 045106 (2019) [10.1063/1.5089496]  

Roseker, W. ; Hruszkewycz, S. O. ; Lehmkühler, F. ; Walther, M. ; Schulte-Schrepping, H. ; LEE, S. ; Osaka, T. ; Strüder, L. ;Hartmann, R. ; Sikorski, M. ; Song, S. ; Robert, A. ; Fuoss, P. H. ; Sutton, M. ; Stephenson, G. B. ; Grübel, G.

One of the important challenges in condensed matter science is to understand ultrafast, atomic-scale fluctuations that dictate dynamic processes in equilibrium and non-equilibrium materials. Here, we report an important step towards reaching that goal by using a state-of-the-art perfect crystal based split-and-delay system, capable of splitting individual X-ray pulses andintroducing femtosecond to nanosecond time delays. We show the results of an ultrafast hard X-ray Photon Correlation Spectroscopy experiment at LCLS where split X-ray pulses were used to measure the dynamics of gold nanoparticles suspended in hexane. We show how reliable speckle contrast values can be extracted even from very low intensity free electron laser(FEL) speckle patterns by applying maximum likelihood fitting, thus demonstrating the potential of a split-and-delay approach for dynamics measurements at FEL sources. This will enable the characterization of equilibrium and, importantly also reversible non-equilibrium processes in atomically disordered materials.

Nature Communications 9(1), 1704 (2018) [10.1038/s41467-018-04178-9]
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-04178-9.epdf

Mueller, L. ; Hartmann, G. ; Schleitzer, S. ; Berntsen, M. H. ; Walther, M. ; Rysov, R. ; Roseker, W. ; Scholz, F. ; Seltmann, J. ;Glaser, L. ; Viefhaus, J. ; Mertens, K. ; Bagschik, K. ; Frömter, R. ; De Fanis, A. ; Shevchuk, I. ; Medjanik, K. ; Öhrwall, G. ;Oepen, H. P. ; Martins, M. ; Meyer, M. ; Grübel, G.

A transmission polarizer for producing elliptically polarized soft X-ray radiation from linearly polarized light is presented. The setup is intended for use at synchrotron and free-electron laser beamlines that do not directly offer circularly polarized light for, e.g., X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) measurements or holographic imaging. Here, we investigate the degree of ellipticity upon transmission of linearly polarized radiation through a cobalt thin film. The experiment was performed at a photon energy resonant to the Co L3-edge, i.e., 778 eV, and the polarization of the transmitted radiation was determined using a polarization analyzer that measures the directional dependence of photo electrons emitted from a gas target. Elliptically polarized radiation can be created at any absorption edge showing the XMCD effect by using the respective magnetic element.

Review of scientific instruments 89(3), 036103 - (2018) [10.1063/1.5018396]

K. Bagschik, R. Frömter, J. Bach, B. Beyersdorff, L. Müller, S. Schleitzer, M. Hårdensson Berntsen, C. Weier, R. Adam, J. Viefhaus, C. M. Schneider, G. Grübel, H. P. Oepen

It is demonstrated that the magnetic diffraction pattern of the isotropic disordered maze pattern is well described utilizing a gamma distribution of domain sizes in a one-dimensional model. From the analysis, the mean domain size and the shape parameter of the distribution are obtained. The model reveals an average domain size that is significantly different from the value that is determined from the peak position of the structure factor in reciprocal space. As a proof of principle, a wedge-shaped (CotÅ/Pd10Å)8 multilayer film, that covers the thickness range of the spin-reorientation transition, has been used. By means of soft x-ray resonant magnetic scattering (XRMS) and imaging techniques the thickness-driven evolution of the magnetic properties of the cobalt layers is explored. It is shown that minute changes of the domain pattern concerning domain size and geometry can be investigated and analyzed due to the high sensitivity and lateral resolution of the XRMS technique. The latter allows for the determination of the magnetic anisotropies of the cobalt layers within a thickness range of a few angstroms.

Phys. Rev. B 94, 134413 (2016)

K. Bagschik, R. Frömter, L. Müller, W. Roseker, J. Bach, P. Staeck, C. Thönnißen, S. Schleitzer, M. H. Berntsen, C. Weier, R. Adam, J. Viefhaus, C. M. Schneider, G. Grübel, H. P. Oepen

We present a method to determine the two-dimensional spatial coherence of synchrotron radiation in the soft X-ray regime by analyzing the Fourier transform of the magnetic speckle pattern from a ferromagnetic film in a multidomain state. To corroborate the results, a Young’s double-pinhole experiment has been performed. The transverse coherence lengths in vertical and horizontal direction of both approaches are in a good agreement. The method presented here is simple and gives a direct access to the coherence properties of synchrotron radiation without nanostructured test objects.

Opt. Express 24(20), 23162-23176 (2016)

B. Vodungbo, et.al.

Does the excitation of ultrafast magnetization require direct interaction between the photons of the optical pump pulse and the magnetic layer? Here, we demonstrate unambiguously that this is not the case. For this we have studied the magnetization dynamics of a ferromagnetic cobalt/palladium multilayer capped by an IR-opaque aluminum layer. Upon excitation with an intense femtosecond-short IR laser pulse, the film exhibits the classical ultrafast demagnetization phenomenon although only a negligible number of IR photons penetrate the aluminum layer. In comparison with an uncapped cobalt/palladium reference film, the initial demagnetization of the capped film occurs with a delayed onset and at a slower rate. Both observations are qualitatively in line with energy transport from the aluminum layer into the underlying magnetic film by the excited, hot electrons of the aluminum film. Our data thus confirm recent theoretical predictions.

Scientific Reports 6, Article number: 18970 (2016)

P. Skopintsev, A. Singer, J. Bach, L. Müller, B. Beyersdorff, S. Schleitzer, O. Gorobtsov, A. Shabalin, R. P. Kurta, D. Dzhigaev, O. M. Yefanov, L. Glaser, A. Sakdinawat, G. Grübel, R. Frömter, H. P. Oepen, J. Viefhaus, I. A. Vartanyants

A method to characterize the spatial coherence of soft X-ray radiation from a single diffraction pattern is presented. The technique is based on scattering from non-redundant arrays (NRAs) of slits and records the degree of spatial coherence at several relative separations from 1 to 15 µm, simultaneously. Using NRAs the spatial coherence of the X-ray beam at the XUV X-ray beamline P04 of the PETRA III synchrotron storage ring was measured as a function of different beam parameters. To verify the results obtained with the NRAs, additional Young's double-pinhole experiments were conducted and showed good agreement.

J. Synchrotron Rad. 21, 722-728 (2014)

C. von Korff Schmising, B. Pfau, M. Schneider, C. M. Günther, M. Giovannella, J. Perron, B. Vodungbo, L. Müller, F. Capotondi, E. Pedersoli, N. Mahne, J. Lüning, S. Eisebitt

Ultrashort, coherent x-ray pulses of a free-electron laser are used to holographically image the magnetization dynamics within a magnetic domain pattern after creation of a localized excitation via an optical standing wave. We observe a spatially confined reduction of the magnetization within a couple of hundred femtoseconds followed by its slower recovery. Additionally, the experimental results show evidence of a spatial evolution of magnetization, which we attribute to ultrafast transport of nonequilibrium spin-polarized electrons for early times and to a fluence-dependent remagnetization rate for later times.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 112, 217203 (2014)

L. Müller, C. Gutt, S. Streit-Nierobisch, M. Walther, S. Schaffert, B. Pfau, J. Geilhufe, F. Büttner, S. Flewett, C. M. Günther, S. Eisebitt, A. Kobs, M. Hille, D. Stickler, R. Frömter, H. P. Oepen, J. Lüning, G. Grübel

An endstation for pump–probe small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) experiments at the free-electron laser in Hamburg (FLASH) is presented. The endstation houses a solid-state absorber, optical incoupling for pump–probe experiments, time zero measurement, sample chamber, and detection unit. It can be used at all FLASH beamlines in the whole photon energy range offered by FLASH. The capabilities of the setup are demonstrated by showing the results of resonant magnetic SAXS measurements on cobalt-platinum multilayer samples grown on freestanding Si3N4 membranes and pump-laser-induced grid structures in multilayer samples.

Rev. Sci. Instrum. 84, 013906 (2013)

F. Capotondi, E. Pedersoli, N. Mahne, R. H. Menk, G. Passos, L. Raimondi, C. Svetina, G. Sandrin, M. Zangrando, M. Kiskinova, S. Bajt, M. Barthelmess, H. Fleckenstein, H. N. Chapman, J. Schulz, S. Schleitzer, L. Müller, C. Gutt, G. Grübel, et. al

FERMI@Elettra, the first vacuum ultraviolet and soft X-ray free-electron laser (FEL) using by default a “seeded” scheme, became operational in 2011 and has been opened to users since December 2012. The parameters of the seeded FERMI FEL pulses and, in particular, the superior control of emitted radiation in terms of spectral purity and stability meet the stringent requirements for single-shot and resonant coherent diffraction imaging (CDI) experiments. The advantages of the intense seeded FERMI pulses with variable polarization have been demonstrated with the first experiments performed using the multipurpose experimental station operated at the diffraction and projection imaging (DiProI) beamline. The results reported here were obtained with fixed non-periodic targets during the commissioning period in 2012 using 20–32 nm wavelength range. They demonstrate that the performance of the FERMI FEL source and the experimental station meets the requirements of CDI, holography, and resonant magnetic scattering in both multi- and single-shot modes. Moreover, we present the first magnetic scattering experiments employing the fully circularly polarized FERMI pulses. The ongoing developments aim at pushing the lateral resolution by using shorter wavelengths provided by double-stage cascaded FERMI FEL-2 and probing ultrafast dynamic processes using different pump-probe schemes, including jitter-free seed laser pump or FEL-pump/FEL-probe with two color FEL pulses generated by the same electron bunch.

Rev. Sci. Instrum. 84, 051301 (2013)

L. Müller, C. Gutt, B. Pfau, S. Schaffert, J. Geilhufe, F. Büttner, J. Mohanty, S. Flewett, R. Treusch, S. Düsterer, H. Redlin, A. Al-Shemmary, M. Hille, A. Kobs, R. Frömter, H. P. Oepen, B. Ziaja, N. Medvedev, S.-K. Son, R. Thiele, R. Santra, et. al.

We present results of single-shot resonant magnetic scattering experiments of Co/Pt multilayer systems using 100 fs long ultraintense pulses from an extreme ultraviolet (XUV) free-electron laser. An x-ray-induced breakdown of the resonant magnetic scattering channel during the pulse duration is observed at fluences of 5  J/cm2. Simultaneously, the speckle contrast of the high-fluence scattering pattern is significantly reduced. We performed simulations of the nonequilibrium evolution of the Co/Pt multilayer system during the XUV pulse duration. We find that the electronic state of the sample is strongly perturbed during the first few femtoseconds of exposure leading to an ultrafast quenching of the resonant magnetic scattering mechanism.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 234801, (2013)

C. E. Graves, A. H. Reid, T. Wang, B. Wu, S. de Jong, K. Vahaplar, I. Radu, D. P. Bernstein, M. Messerschmidt, L. Müller, R. Coffee, M. Bionta, S. W. Epp, R. Hartmann, N. Kimmel, et. al.

Ultrafast laser techniques have revealed extraordinary spin dynamics in magnetic materials that equilibrium descriptions of magnetism cannot explain. Particularly important for future applications is understanding non-equilibrium spin dynamics following laser excitation on the nanoscale, yet the limited spatial resolution of optical laser techniques has impeded such nanoscale studies. Here we present ultrafast diffraction experiments with an X-ray laser that probes the nanoscale spin dynamics following optical laser excitation in the ferrimagnetic alloy GdFeCo, which exhibits macroscopic all-optical switching. Our study reveals that GdFeCo displays nanoscale chemical and magnetic inhomogeneities that affect the spin dynamics. In particular, we observe Gd spin reversal in Gd-rich nanoregions within the first picosecond driven by the non-local transfer of angular momentum from larger adjacent Fe-rich nanoregions. These results suggest that a magnetic material’s microstructure can be engineered to control transient laser-excited spins, potentially allowing faster (~ 1 ps) spin reversal than in present technologies.

Nature Materials 12, 293–298, (2013)

B. Pfau, S. Schaffert, L. Müller, C. Gutt, A. Al-Shemmary, F. Büttner, R. Delaunay, S. Düsterer, S. Flewett, R. Frömter, J. Geilhufe, E. Guehrs, C.M. Günther, R. Hawaldar, M. Hille, N. Jaouen, A. Kobs, K. Li, J. Mohanty, H. Redlin et. al

During ultrafast demagnetization of a magnetically ordered solid, angular momentum has to be transferred between the spins, electrons, and phonons in the system on femto- and picosecond timescales. Although the intrinsic spin-transfer mechanisms are intensely debated, additional extrinsic mechanisms arising due to nanoscale heterogeneity have only recently entered the discussion. Here we use femtosecond X-ray pulses from a free-electron laser to study thin film samples with magnetic domain patterns. We observe an infrared-pump-induced change of the spin structure within the domain walls on the sub-picosecond timescale. This domain-topography-dependent contribution connects the intrinsic demagnetization process in each domain with spin-transport processes across the domain walls, demonstrating the importance of spin-dependent electron transport between differently magnetized regions as an ultrafast demagnetization channel. This pathway exists independent from structural inhomogeneities such as chemical interfaces, and gives rise to an ultrafast spatially varying response to optical pump pulses.

Nature Communications 3, Article number: 1100

Tianhan Wang et al.

We present the first single-shot images of ferromagnetic, nanoscale spin order taken with femtosecond x-ray pulses. X-ray-induced electron and spin dynamics can be outrun with pulses shorter than 80 fs in the investigated fluence regime, and no permanent aftereffects in the samples are observed below a fluence of 25  mJ/cm2. Employing resonant spatially muliplexed x-ray holography results in a low imaging threshold of 5  mJ/cm2. Our results open new ways to combine ultrafast laser spectroscopy with sequential snapshot imaging on a single sample, generating a movie of excited state dynamics.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 267403 (2012)

F. Randi, M. Esposito, F. Giusti, F. Parmigiani, O. Misochko, D. Fausti, M. Eckstein

We show that, in optical pump-probe experiments on bulk samples, the statistical distribution of the intensity of ultrashort light pulses after interaction with a nonequilibrium complex material can be used to measure the time-dependent noise of the current in the system. We illustrate the general arguments for a photoexcited Peierls material. The transient noise spectroscopy allows us to measure to what extent electronic degrees of freedom dynamically obey the fluctuation-dissipation theorem, and how well they thermalize during the coherent lattice vibrations. The proposed statistical measurement developed here provides a new general framework to retrieve dynamical information on the excited distributions in nonequilibrium experiments, which could be extended to other degrees of freedom of magnetic or vibrational origin.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 187403 (2017)

D. Golez, L. Boehnke, H. Strand, M. Eckstein, P. Werner

We study the dynamics of screening in photodoped Mott insulators with long-ranged interactions using a nonequilibrium implementation of the GW plus extended dynamical mean-field theory formalism. Our study demonstrates that the complex interplay of the injected carriers with bosonic degrees of freedom (charge fluctuations) can result in long-lived transient states with properties that are distinctly different from those of thermal equilibrium states. Systems with strong nonlocal interactions are found to exhibit a self-sustained population inversion of the doublons and holes. This population inversion leads to low-energy antiscreening which can be detected in time-resolved electron-energy-loss spectra.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 246402 (2017)

Y. Murakami, N. Tsuji, M. Eckstein, P. Werner

We perform a systematic analysis of the influence of phonon driving on the superconducting Holstein model coupled to heat baths by studying both the transient dynamics and the nonequilibrium steady state (NESS) in the weak and strong electron-phonon coupling regimes. Our study is based on the nonequilibrium dynamical mean-field theory, and for the NESS we present a Floquet formulation adapted to electron-phonon systems. The analysis of the phonon propagator suggests that the effective attractive interaction can be strongly enhanced in a parametric resonant regime because of the Floquet side bands of phonons. While this may be expected to enhance the superconductivity (SC), our fully self-consistent calculations, which include the effects of heating and nonthermal distributions, show that the parametric phonon driving generically results in a suppression or complete melting of the SC order. In the strong coupling regime, the NESS always shows a suppression of the SC gap, the SC order parameter, and the superfluid density as a result of the driving, and this tendency is most prominent at the parametric resonance. Using the real-time nonequilibrium DMFT formalism, we also study the dynamics towards the NESS, which shows that the heating effect dominates the transient dynamics, and SC is weakened by the external driving, in particular at the parametric resonance. In the weak coupling regime, we find that the SC fluctuations above the transition temperature are generally weakened under the driving. The strongest suppression occurs again around the parametric resonances because of the efficient energy absorption.

Phys. Rev. B 96, 045125 (2017)

Sharareh Sayyad and Martin Eckstein

We investigate the time-dependent reformation of the quasiparticle peak in a correlated metal near the Mott transition, after the system is quenched into a hot electron state and equilibrates with an environment which is colder than the Fermi-liquid crossover temperature. Close to the transition, we identify a purely electronic bottleneck time scale, which depends on the spectral weight around the Fermi energy in the bad metallic phase in a nonlinear way. This time scale can be orders of magnitude larger than the bare and renormalized electronic hopping time, so that a separation of electronic and lattice time scales may break down. The results are obtained using nonequilibrium dynamical mean-field theory and a slave-rotor representation of the Anderson impurity model.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 117, 096403 (2016)

Malte Behrmann, Alexander I. Lichtenstein, Mikhail I. Katsnelson, and Frank Lechermann

Time-dependent spin phenomena in condensed matter are most often either described in the weakly correlated limit of metallic Stoner-Slater-like magnetism via band theory or in the strongly correlated limit of Heisenberg-like interacting spins in an insulator. However, many experimental studies, e.g., of (de)magnetization processes, focus on itinerant local-moment materials, such as transition metals and various of their compounds. We here present a general theoretical framework that is capable of addressing correlated spin dynamics, also in the presence of a vanishing charge gap. A real-space implementation of the time-dependent rotational-invariant slave boson methodology allows us to treat nonequilibrium spins numerically fast and efficiently beyond linear response as well as beyond the band-theoretical or Heisenberg limit.

Phys. Rev. B 94, 165120 (2016)

A. Secchi, A. I. Lichtenstein, and M. I. Katsnelson

We study the dynamical magnetic susceptibility of a strongly correlated electronic system in the presence of a time-dependent hopping field, deriving a generalized Bethe-Salpeter equation that is valid also out of equilibrium. Focusing on the single-orbital Hubbard model within the time-dependent Hartree-Fock approximation, we solve the equation in the nonequilibrium adiabatic regime, obtaining a closed expression for the transverse magnetic susceptibility. From this, we provide a rigorous definition of nonequilibrium (time-dependent) magnon frequencies and exchange parameters, expressed in terms of nonequilibrium single-electron Green's functions and self-energies. In the particular case of equilibrium, we recover previously known results.

Phys. Rev. B 94, 085153 (2016)

D. Golež, P. Werner, M. Eckstein

We study the dynamical phase transition out of an excitonic insulator phase after photoexcitation using a time-dependent extension of the self-consistent GW method. We connect the evolution of the photoemission spectra to the dynamics of the excitonic order parameter and identify two dynamical phase transition points marked by a slowdown in the relaxation: one critical point is connected with the trapping in a nonthermal state with reduced exciton density and the second corresponds to the thermal phase transition. The transfer of kinetic energy from the photoexcited carriers to the exciton condensate is shown to be the main mechanism for the gap melting. We analyze the low energy dynamics of screening, which strongly depends on the presence of the excitonic gap, and argue that it is difficult to interpret the static component of the screened interaction as the effective interaction of some low energy model. Instead we propose a phenomenological measure for the effective interaction which indicates that screening has minor effects on the low energy dynamics.

Phys. Rev. B 94, 035121 (2016)

F. Hofmann, M. Eckstein, M. Potthoff

The real-time dynamics of the Fermi-Hubbard model, driven out of equilibrium by quenching or ramping the interaction parameter, is studied within the framework of the nonequilibrium self-energy functional theory. A dynamical impurity approximation with a single auxiliary bath site is considered as a reference system and the time-dependent hybridization is optimized as prescribed by the variational principle. The dynamical two-site approximation turns out to be useful to study the real-time dynamics on short and intermediate time scales. Depending on the strength of the interaction in the final state, two qualitatively different response regimes are found. For both weak and strong couplings, qualitative agreement with previous results of nonequilibrium dynamical mean-field theory is found. The two regimes are sharply separated by a critical point at which the low-energy bath degree of freedom decouples in the course of time. We trace the dependence of the critical interaction of the dynamical Mott transition on the duration of the interaction ramp from sudden quenches to adiabatic dynamics, and therewith link the dynamical to the equilibrium Mott transition.

Phys. Rev. B 93, 235104 (2016)

Felix Hofmann, Martin Eckstein, Michael Potthoff

The non-equilibrium variational-cluster approach is applied to study the real-time dynamics of the double occupancy in the one-dimensional Fermi-Hubbard model after different fast changes of hopping parameters. A simple reference system, consisting of isolated Hubbard dimers, is used to discuss different aspects of the numerical implementation of the approach in the general framework of non-equilibrium self-energy functional theory. Opposed to a direct solution of the Euler equation, its time derivative is found to serve as numerically tractable and stable conditional equation to fix the time-dependent variational parameters.

Journal of Physics: Conference Series, Volume 696, conference 1 (2016)

Isabella Gierz, Matteo Mitrano, Hubertus Bromberger, Cephise Cacho, Richard Chapman, Emma Springate, Stefan Link, Ulrich Starke, Burkhard Sachs, Martin Eckstein, Tim O. Wehling, Mikhail I. Katsnelson, Alexander Lichtenstein, and Andrea Cavalleri

We modulate the atomic structure of bilayer graphene by driving its lattice at resonance with the in-plane E_1u lattice vibration at 6.3  μm. Using time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (tr-ARPES) with extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) pulses, we measure the response of the Dirac electrons near the K point. We observe that lattice modulation causes anomalous carrier dynamics, with the Dirac electrons reaching lower peak temperatures and relaxing at faster rate compared to when the excitation is applied away from the phonon resonance or in monolayer samples. Frozen phonon calculations predict dramatic band structure changes when the E_1u vibration is driven, which we use to explain the anomalous dynamics observed in the experiment.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 125503 (2015)

M. Behrmann, F. Lechermann

Laser-induced ultrafast (fs) magnetization experiments in antiferromagnets have recently attracted large attention, paving the road for inherently fast spin dynamics in the THz regime without invoking stray fields. The technical importance is emphasized by the rising new research field of antiferromagnetic (AFM) spintronics, where superexchange-dominated strongly correlated compounds provide an interesting materials playground. An intriguing question is whether the Coulomb interaction may be a key to control AFM order on ultrafast time scales. Therefore, we study (de)magnetization processes in a time-dependent multiorbital Hubbard model, focusing on t2g electrons in a wider doping range. Depending on filling, we reveal large-amplitude spin oscillations via interaction quenches from the antiferromagnetic or paramagnetic state. Nonequilibrium ultrafast spin-orientation effects in prominent correlated transition-metal oxides are therefrom predicted.

Phys. Rev. B 91, 075110 (2015)

D. Yudin, D. Hirschmeier, H. Hafermann, O. Eriksson, A. I. Lichtenstein, M. I. Katsnelson

The proximity of the Fermi surface to van Hove singularities drastically enhances interaction effects and leads to essentially new physics. In this work we address the formation of flat bands (“Fermi condensation”) within the Hubbard model on the triangular lattice and provide a detailed analysis from an analytical and numerical perspective. To describe the effect we consider both weak-coupling and strong-coupling approaches, namely the renormalization group and dual fermion methods. It is shown that the band flattening is driven by correlations and is well pronounced even at sufficiently high temperatures, of the order of 0.1–0.2 of the hopping parameter. The effect can therefore be probed in experiments with ultracold fermions in optical lattices.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 112, 070403 (2014)

M. Behrmann, M. Fabrizio, F. Lechermann

We reformulate the time-dependent Gutzwiller approximation by M. Schiró and M. Fabrizio, [Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 076401 (2010)] in the framework of slave-boson mean-field theory, which is used to investigate the dynamical Mott transition of the generic two-band Hubbard model at half filling upon an interaction quench. Interorbital fluctuations lead to notable changes with respect to the single-band case. The singular dynamical transition is replaced by a broad regime of long-lived fluctuations between metallic and insulating states, accompanied by intriguing precursor behavior. A mapping to a spin model proves helpful to analyze the different regions in terms of the evolution of an Ising-like order parameter. Contrary to the static case, singlet occupations remain vital in the Mott-insulating regime with finite Hund's exchange.

Phys. Rev. B 88, 035116 (2013)

A. Secchi, S. Brener, A. I. Lichtenstein, M. I. Katsnelson

We formulate a low-energy theory for the magnetic interactions between electrons in the multi-band Hubbard model under non-equilibrium conditions determined by an external time-dependent electric field which simulates laser-induced spin dynamics. We derive expressions for dynamical exchange parameters in terms of non-equilibrium electronic Green functions and self-energies, which can be computed, e.g., with the methods of time-dependent dynamical mean-field theory. Moreover, we find that a correct description of the system requires, in addition to exchange, a new kind of magnetic interaction, that we name twist exchange, which formally resembles Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya coupling, but is not due to spin–orbit, and is actually due to an effective three-spin interaction. Our theory allows the evaluation of the related time-dependent parameters as well.

Ann. Phys. 333, 221 (2013)

L. Boehnke, F. Lechermann

Based on dynamical mean-field theory with a continuous-time quantum Monte-Carlo impurity solver, static as well as dynamic spin and charge susceptibilites for the phase diagram of the sodium cobaltate system Na$_x$CoO$_2$ are discussed. The approach includes important vertex contributions to the q-dependent two-particle response functions by means of a local approximation to the irreducible vertex function in the particle-hole channel. A single-band Hubbard model suffices to reveal several charge- and spin-instability tendencies in accordance with experiment, including the stabilization of an effective kagome sublattice close to x=0.67, without invoking the doping-dependent Na-potential landscape. The in-plane antiferromagnetic-to-ferromagnetic crossover is additionally verified by means of the computed Korringa ratio. Moreover an intricate high-energy mode in the transverse spin susceptiblity is revealed, pointing towards a strong energy dependence of the effective intersite exchange.

Phys. Rev. B 85, 115128 (2012)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1012.5943

Simon Michel and Michael Potthoff

The feedback of the geometrical Berry phase, accumulated in an electron system, on the slow dynamics of classical degrees of freedom is governed by the Berry curvature. Here, we study local magnetic moments, modeled as classical spins, which are locally exchange coupled to the (spinful) Haldane model for a Chern insulator. In the emergent equations of motion for the slow classical-spin dynamics there is a an additional anomalous geometrical spin torque, which originates from the corresponding spin Berry curvature. Due to the explicitly broken time-reversal symmetry, this is nonzero but usually small in a condensed-matter system. We develop the general theory and compute the spin Berry curvature, mainly in the limit of weak exchange coupling, in various parameter regimes of the Haldane model, particularly close to a topological phase transition and for spins coupled to sites at the zigzag edge of the model in a ribbon geometry. The spatial structure of the spin Berry curvature tensor, its symmetry properties, the distance dependence of its nonlocal elements, and further properties are discussed in detail. For the case of two classical spins, the effect of the geometrical spin torque leads to an anomalous non-Hamiltonian spin dynamics. It is demonstrated that the magnitude of the spin Berry curvature is decisively controlled by the size of the insulating gap, the system size, and the strength of local exchange coupling.

Phys. Rev. B 106, 235423 (2022)

Robin Quade and Michael Potthoff

The time-dependent state of a classical spin locally exchange coupled to an edge site of a Kane-Mele model in the topologically nontrivial phase is studied numerically by solving the full set of coupled microscopic equations of motion for the spin and the electron system. Dynamics in the long-time limit is accessible thanks to dissipative boundary conditions, applied to all but the zigzag edge of interest. We study means to control the state of the spin via transport of a spin-polarization cloud through the helical edge states. The cloud is formed at a distant edge site using a local magnetic field to inject an electron spin density and released by suddenly switching off the injection field. This basic process, consisting of spin injection, propagation of the spin-polarization cloud, and scattering of the cloud from the classical spin, can be used to steer the spin state in a controlled way. We find that the effect of a single basic process can be reverted to a high degree with a subsequent process. Furthermore, we show that by concatenating several basic injection-propagation-scattering processes, the spin state can be switched completely and that a full reversal can be achieved.

Phys. Rev. B 105, 035406 (2022)

David Krüger and Michael Potthoff

We study a generic model of a Chern insulator supplemented by a Hubbard interaction in arbitrary even dimension D and demonstrate that the model remains well defined and nontrivial in the D → ∞ limit. Dynamical mean-field theory is applicable and predicts a phase diagram with a continuum of topologically different phases separating a correlated Mott insulator from the trivial band insulator. We discuss various features, such as the elusive distinction between insulating and semimetal states, which are unconventional already in the noninteracting case. Topological phases are characterized by a nonquantized Chern density replacing the Chern number as D → ∞.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 126, 196401 (2021)

Simon Michel and Michael Potthoff

We discuss the emergence of an effective low-energy theory for the real-time dynamics of two classical impurity spins within the framework of a prototypical and purely classical model of indirect magnetic exchange: two classical impurity spins are embedded in a host system which consists of a finite number of classical spins localized on the sites of a lattice and interacting via a nearest-neighbor Heisenberg exchange. An effective low-energy theory for the slow impurity-spin dynamics is derived for the regime, where the local exchange coupling between impurity and host spins is weak. To this end, we apply the recently developed adiabatic spin dynamics (ASD) theory. Besides the Hamiltonian-like classical spin torques, the ASD additionally accounts for a novel topological spin torque that originates as a holonomy effect in the close-to-adiabatic-dynamics regime. It is shown that the effective low-energy precession dynamics cannot be derived from an effective Hamilton function and is characterized by a nonvanishing precession frequency even if the initial state deviates only slightly from a ground state. The effective theory is compared to the fully numerical solution of the equations of motion for the whole system of impurity and host spins to identify the parameter regime where the adiabatic effective theory applies. Effective theories beyond the adiabatic approximation must necessarily include dynamic host degrees of freedom and go beyond the idea of a simple indirect magnetic exchange. We discuss an example of a generalized constrained spin dynamics which does improve the description but also fails for certain geometrical setups.

Phys. Rev. B 103, 024449 (2021)

Michael Elbracht and Michael Potthoff

The relaxation of a classical spin, exchange coupled to the local magnetic moment at an edge site of the one-dimensional spinful Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model, is studied numerically by solving the full set of equations of motion. A Lindblad coupling of a few sites at the opposite edge to an absorbing bath ensures that convergence with respect to the system size is achieved with only a moderate number of core sites. This allows us to numerically exactly study the long-time limit and to determine the parameter regimes where spin relaxation takes place. Corresponding dynamical phase diagrams for the topologically trivial and the nontrivial cases are constructed. The dynamical phase boundaries, the role of the topological edge state, and its internal Zeeman splitting for the spin-relaxation process, as well as incomplete spin relaxation on long time scales can be explained within the framework of a renormalized linear-response approach when explicitly taking retardation effects and nonequilibrium spin-exchange processes into account.

Phys. Rev. B 103, 024301 (2021)

Michael Elbracht and Michael Potthoff

The relaxation time of a classical spin interacting with a large conduction-electron system is computed for a weak magnetic field, which initially drives the spin out of equilibrium. We trace the spin and the conduction-electron dynamics on a timescale which exceeds the characteristic electronic scale that is set by the inverse nearest-neighbor hopping by more than five orders of magnitude. This is achieved with a construction of absorbing boundary conditions, which employs a generalized Lindblad master-equation approach to couple the edge sites of the conduction-electron tight-binding model to an external bath. The failure of the standard Lindblad approach to absorbing boundaries is traced back to artificial excitations initially generated due to the coupling to the bath. This can be cured by introducing Lindblad parameter matrices and by fixing those matrices to perfectly suppress initial-state artifacts as well as reflections of physical excitations propagating to the system boundaries. Numerical results are presented and discussed for generic one-dimensional models of the electronic structure.

Phys. Rev. B 102, 115434 (2020)

M. Elbracht, S. Michel, M. Potthoff

In classical spin systems with two largely different inherent timescales, the configuration of the fast spins almost instantaneously follows the slow-spin dynamics. We develop the emergent effective theory for the slow-spin degrees of freedom and demonstrate that this generally includes a topological spin torque. This torque gives rise to anomalous real-time dynamics. It derives from the holonomic constraints defining the fast-spin configuration space and is given in terms of a topological charge density which becomes a quantized homotopy invariant when integrated.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 197202 (2020)

R. Rausch, M. Potthoff, N. Kawakami

We present a novel pairing mechanism for electrons, mediated by magnons. These paired bound states are termed “magnetic doublons.” Applying numerically exact techniques (full diagonalization and the density-matrix renormalization group, DMRG) to the Kondo lattice model at strong exchange coupling J for different fillings and magnetic configurations, we demonstrate that magnetic doublon excitations exist as composite objects with very weak dispersion. They are highly stable, support a novel “inverse” colossal magnetoresistance and potentially other effects.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 123, 216401 (2019)
arXiv:1909.11896

R. Rausch, M. Potthoff

In high-resolution core-valence-valence (CVV) Auger electron spectroscopy from the surface of a solid at thermal equilibrium, the main correlation satellite, visible in the case of strong valence-electron correlations, corresponds to a bound state of the two holes in the final state of the CVV Auger process. We discuss the physical significance of this satellite in nonequilibrium pump-probe Auger spectroscopy by numerical analysis of a single-band Hubbard-type model system, including core states and a continuum of high-energy scattering states. It turns out that the spectrum of the photo-doped system, due to the increased double occupancy, shares features with the equilibrium spectrum at higher fillings. The pumping of doublons can be watched when working with overlapping pulses at short Δt. For larger pump-probe delays Δt and on the typical femtosecond timescale for electronic relaxation processes, spectra are hardly Δt dependent, reflecting the high stability of bound two-hole states for strong Hubbard U. We argue that taking into account the spatial expansion of single-particle orbitals when these are doubly occupied, as described by the dynamical Hubbard model, produces an oscillation of the barycenter of the satellite as a function of Δt. Pump-probe Auger-electron spectroscopy is thus highly sensitive to dynamical screening of the Coulomb interaction.

Phys. Rev. B 99, 205108 (2019)
arXiv:1901.02817

M. Peschke, L.-M. Woelk, M. Potthoff

The effect of next-nearest-neighbor hopping t₂ on the ground-state phase diagram of the one-dimensional Kondo lattice is studied with density-matrix renormalization-group techniques and by comparing with the phase diagram of the classical-spin variant of the same model. For a finite t₂, i.e., for a zigzag-ladder geometry, indirect antiferromagnetic interactions between the localized spins are geometrically frustrated. We demonstrate that t₂ at the same time triggers several magnetic phases which are absent in the model with nearest-neighbor hopping only. For strong J, we find a transition from antiferromagnetic to incommensurate magnetic short-range order, which can be understood entirely in the classical-spin picture. For weaker J, a spin-dimerized phase emerges, which spontaneously breaks the discrete translation symmetry. The phase is not accessible to perturbative means but is explained, on a qualitative level, by the classical-spin model as well. Spin dimerization alleviates magnetic frustration and is interpreted as a key to understand the emergence of quasi-long-range spiral magnetic order, which is found at weaker couplings. The phase diagram at weak J, with gapless quasi-long-range order on top of the twofold degenerate spin-dimerized ground state, competing with a nondegenerate phase with gapped spin (and charge) excitations, is unconventional and eludes an effective low-energy spin-only theory.

Phys. Rev. B 99, 085140 (2019)
arXiv:1901.01236

M. Steinbrecher, R. Rausch, Khai Ton That, J. Hermenau, A.A. Khajetoorians, M. Potthoff, R. Wiesendanger, J. Wiebe

Non-collinear spin states with unique rotational sense, such as chiral spin-spirals, are recently heavily investigated because of advantages for future applications in spintronics and information technology and as potential hosts for Majorana Fermions when coupled to a superconductor. Tuning the properties of such spin states, e.g., the rotational period and sense, is a highly desirable yet difficult task. Here, we experimentally demonstrate the bottom-up assembly of a spin-spiral derived from a chain of iron atoms on a platinum substrate using the magnetic tip of a scanning tunneling microscope as a tool. We show that the spin-spiral is induced by the interplay of the Heisenberg and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya components of the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida interaction between the iron atoms. The relative strengths and signs of these two components can be adjusted by the interatomic iron distance, which enables tailoring of the rotational period and sense of the spin-spiral.

Nat. Commun. 9, 2853 (2018)

C. Stahl, M. Potthoff

Precession and relaxation predominantly characterize the real-time dynamics of a spin driven by a magnetic field and coupled to a large Fermi sea of conduction electrons. We demonstrate an anomalous precession with frequency higher than the Larmor frequency or with inverted orientation in the limit where the electronic motion adiabatically follows the spin dynamics. For a classical spin, the effect is traced back to a geometrical torque resulting from a finite spin Berry curvature.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 227203 (2017)

C. Gramsch, M. Potthoff

Using the recently introduced time-local formulation of the nonequilibrium cluster perturbation theory (CPT), we construct a generalization of the approach such that macroscopic conservation laws are respected. This is achieved by exploiting the freedom for the choice of the starting point of the all-order perturbation theory in the intercluster hopping. The proposed conserving CPT is a self-consistent propagation scheme which respects the conservation of energy, particle number, and spin, which treats short-range correlations exactly up to the linear scale of the cluster, and which represents a mean-field-like approach on length scales beyond the cluster size. Using Green's functions, conservation laws are formulated as local constraints on the local spin-dependent particle and the doublon density. We consider them as conditional equations to self-consistently fix the time-dependent intracluster one-particle parameters. Thanks to the intrinsic causality of the CPT, this can be set up as a step-by-step time propagation scheme with a computational effort scaling linearly with the maximum propagation time and exponentially in the cluster size. As a proof of concept, we consider the dynamics of the two-dimensional, particle-hole-symmetric Hubbard model following a weak interaction quench by simply employing two-site clusters only. Conservation laws are satisfied by construction. We demonstrate that enforcing them has strong impact on the dynamics. While the doublon density is strongly oscillating within plain CPT, a monotonic relaxation is observed within the conserving CPT.

Phys. Rev. B 95, 205130 (2017)

R. Rausch and M. Potthoff

The fate of a local two-hole doublon excitation in the one-dimensional Fermi-Hubbard model is systematically studied for strong Hubbard interaction U in the entire filling range using the density-matrix renormalization group (DMRG) and the Bethe ansatz. For strong U, two holes at the same site form a compound object whose decay is impeded by the lack of phase space. Still, a partial decay is possible on an extremely short time scale where phase-space arguments do not yet apply. We argue that the initial decay and the resulting intermediate state are relevant for experiments performed with ultracold atoms loaded into an optical lattice as well as for (time-resolved) CVV Auger-electron spectroscopy. The detailed discussion comprises the mixed ballistic-diffusive real-time propagation of the doublon through the lattice, its partial decay on the short time scale as a function of filling and interaction strength, as well as the analysis of the decay products, which are metastable on the intermediate time scale that is numerically accessible and which show up in the two-hole excitation (Auger) spectrum. The ambivalent role of singly occupied sites is key to understanding the doublon physics; for high fillings, ground-state configurations with single occupancies are recognized to strongly relax the kinematic constraints and to open up decay channels. For fillings close to half-filling, however, their presence actually blocks the doublon decay. Finally, the analysis of the continua in the two-hole spectrum excludes a picture where the doublon decays into unbound electron holes for generic fillings, different from the limiting case of the completely filled band. We demonstrate that the decay products as well as the doublon propagation should rather be understood in terms of Bethe ansatz eigenstates.

Phys. Rev. B 95, 045152 (2017)

F. Hofmann, M. Eckstein, M. Potthoff

The real-time dynamics of the Fermi-Hubbard model, driven out of equilibrium by quenching or ramping the interaction parameter, is studied within the framework of the nonequilibrium self-energy functional theory. A dynamical impurity approximation with a single auxiliary bath site is considered as a reference system and the time-dependent hybridization is optimized as prescribed by the variational principle. The dynamical two-site approximation turns out to be useful to study the real-time dynamics on short and intermediate time scales. Depending on the strength of the interaction in the final state, two qualitatively different response regimes are found. For both weak and strong couplings, qualitative agreement with previous results of nonequilibrium dynamical mean-field theory is found. The two regimes are sharply separated by a critical point at which the low-energy bath degree of freedom decouples in the course of time. We trace the dependence of the critical interaction of the dynamical Mott transition on the duration of the interaction ramp from sudden quenches to adiabatic dynamics, and therewith link the dynamical to the equilibrium Mott transition.

Phys. Rev. B 93, 235104 (2016)

M. Sayad, R. Rausch, M. Potthoff

Spin dynamics in the Kondo impurity model, initiated by suddenly switching the direction of a local magnetic field, is studied by means of the time-dependent density-matrix renormalization group. Quantum effects are identified by systematic computations for different spin quantum numbers S and by comparing with tight-binding spin-dynamics theory for the classical-spin Kondo model. We demonstrate that, besides the conventional precessional motion and relaxation, the quantum-spin dynamics shows nutation, similar to a spinning top. Opposed to semiclassical theory, however, the nutation is efficiently damped on an extremely short time scale. The effect is explained in the large-S limit as quantum dephasing of the eigenmodes in an emergent two-spin model that is weakly entangled with the bulk of the system. We argue that, apart from the Kondo effect, the damping of nutational motion is essentially the only characteristics of the quantum nature of the spin. Qualitative agreement between quantum and semiclassical spin dynamics is found down to S=1/2.

Europhys. Lett. 116, 17001 (2016)

J. Braun, R. Rausch, M. Potthoff, H. Ebert

A theoretical frame for two-photon photoemission is derived from the general theory of pump-probe photoemission, assuming that not only the probe but also the pump pulse is sufficiently weak. This allows us to use a perturbative approach to compute the lesser Green function within the Keldysh formalism. Two-photon photoemission spectroscopy is a widely used analytical tool to study nonequilibrium phenomena in solid materials. Our theoretical approach aims at a material-specific, realistic, and quantitative description of the time-dependent spectrum based on a picture of effectively independent electrons as described by the local-density approximation in band-structure theory. To this end we follow Pendry's one-step theory of the photoemission process as close as possible and heavily make use of concepts of relativistic multiple-scattering theory, such as the representation of the final state by a time-reversed low-energy electron diffraction state. The formalism allows for a quantitative calculation of the time-dependent photocurrent for moderately correlated systems like simple metals or more complex compounds like topological insulators. An application to the Ag(100) surface is discussed in detail.

Phys. Rev. B 94, 125128 (2016)

M. Sayad, R. Rausch, M. Potthoff

A classical spin which is antiferromagnetically coupled to a system of strongly correlated conduction electrons is shown to exhibit unconventional real-time dynamics which cannot be described by Gilbert damping. Depending on the strength of the local Coulomb interaction U, the two main electronic dissipation channels, namely transport of excitations via correlated hopping and via excitations of correlation-induced magnetic moments, become active on largely different time scales. We demonstrate that correlations can lead to a strongly suppressed relaxation which so far has been observed in purely electronic systems only and which is governed here by proximity to the divergent magnetic time scale in the infinite-U limit.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 117, 127201 (2016)

F. Hofmann, M. Potthoff

The time-dependent Mott transition in a periodic Anderson model with off-site, nearest-neighbor hybridization is studied within the framework of nonequilibrium self-energy functional theory. Using the two-site dynamical-impurity approximation, we compute the real-time dynamics of the optimal variational parameter and of different observables initiated by sudden quenches of the Hubbard-U and identify the critical interaction. The time-dependent transition is orbital selective, i.e., in the final state, reached in the long-time limit after the quench to the critical interaction, the Mott gap opens in the spectral function of the localized orbitals only. We discuss the dependence of the critical interaction and of the final-state effective temperature on the hybridization strength and point out the various similarities between the nonequilibrium and the equilibrium Mott transition. It is shown that these can also be smoothly connected to each other by increasing the duration of a U-ramp from a sudden quench to a quasi-static process. The physics found for the model with off-site hybridization is compared with the dynamical Mott transition in the single-orbital Hubbard model and with the dynamical crossover found for the real-time dynamics of the conventional Anderson lattice with on-site hybridization.

Eur. Phys. J. B 89, 178 (2016)

R. Rausch, M. Potthoff

Using the density-matrix renormalization group in combination with the Chebyshev polynomial expansion technique, we study the two-hole excitation spectrum of the one-dimensional Hubbard model in the entire filling range from the completely occupied band (n = 2) down to half-filling (n = 1). For strong interactions, the spectra reveal multiplon physics, i.e., relevant final states are characterized by two (doublon), three (triplon), four (quadruplon) and more holes, potentially forming stable compound objects or resonances with finite lifetime. These give rise to several satellites in the spectra with largely different spectral weights as well as to different two-hole, doublon–hole, two-doublon etc continua. The complex multiplon phenomenology is analyzed by interpreting not only local and k-resolved two-hole spectra but also three- and four-hole spectra for the Hubbard model and by referring to effective low-energy models. In addition, a filter-operator technique is presented and applied which allows to extract specific information on the final states at a given excitation energy. While multiplons composed of an odd number of holes do neither form stable compounds nor well-defined resonances unless a nearest-neighbor density interaction V is added to the Hamiltonian, the doublon and the quadruplon are well-defined resonances. The k-resolved four-hole spectrum at n = 2 represents an interesting special case where a completely stable quadruplon turns into a resonance by merging with the doublon–doublon continuum at a critical wave vector. For all fillings with $n\gt 1$, the doublon lifetime is strongly k-dependent and is even infinite at the Brillouin zone edges as demonstrated by k-resolved two-hole spectra. This can be traced back to the 'hidden' charge-SU(2) symmetry of the model which is explicitly broken off half-filling and gives rise to a massive collective excitation, even for arbitrary higher-dimensional but bipartite lattices.

New J. Phys. 18, 023033 (2016)

Felix Hofmann, Martin Eckstein, Michael Potthoff

The non-equilibrium variational-cluster approach is applied to study the real-time dynamics of the double occupancy in the one-dimensional Fermi-Hubbard model after different fast changes of hopping parameters. A simple reference system, consisting of isolated Hubbard dimers, is used to discuss different aspects of the numerical implementation of the approach in the general framework of non-equilibrium self-energy functional theory. Opposed to a direct solution of the Euler equation, its time derivative is found to serve as numerically tractable and stable conditional equation to fix the time-dependent variational parameters.

Journal of Physics: Conference Series, Volume 696, conference 1

C. Gramsch, M. Potthoff

It is shown that the nonequilibrium self-energy of an interacting lattice-fermion model has a unique Lehmann representation. Based on the construction of a suitable noninteracting effective medium, we provide an explicit and numerically practicable scheme to construct the Lehmann representation for the self-energy, given the Lehmann representation of the single-particle nonequilibrium Green's function. This is of particular importance for an efficient numerical solution of Dyson's equation in the context of approximations where the self-energy is obtained from a reference system with a small Hilbert space. As compared to conventional techniques to solve Dyson's equation on the Keldysh contour, the effective-medium approach allows us to reach a maximum propagation time, which can be several orders of magnitude longer. This is demonstrated explicitly by choosing the nonequilibrium cluster-perturbation theory as a simple approach to study the long-time dynamics of an inhomogeneous initial state after a quantum quench in the Hubbard model on a 10×10 square lattice. We demonstrate that the violation of conservation laws is moderate for weak Hubbard interaction and that the cluster approach is able to describe prethermalization physics.

Phys. Rev. B 92, 235135 (2015)

M. Sayad, M. Potthoff

The real-time dynamics of a classical spin in an external magnetic field and local exchange coupled to an extended one-dimensional system of non-interacting conduction electrons is studied numerically. Retardation effects in the coupled electron-spin dynamics are shown to be the source for the relaxation of the spin in the magnetic field. Total energy and spin is conserved in the non-adiabatic process. Approaching the new local ground state is therefore accompanied by the emission of dispersive wave packets of excitations carrying energy and spin and propagating through the lattice with Fermi velocity. While the spin dynamics in the regime of strong exchange coupling J is rather complex and governed by an emergent new time scale, the motion of the spin for weak J is regular and qualitatively well described by the Landau–Lifschitz–Gilbert (LLG) equation. Quantitatively, however, the full quantum–classical hybrid dynamics differs from the LLG approach. This is understood as a breakdown of weak-coupling perturbation theory in J in the course of time. Furthermore, it is shown that the concept of the Gilbert damping parameter is ill-defined for the case of a one-dimensional system.

New J. Phys. 17, 113058 (2015)

M. W. Aulbach, I. Titvinidze, M. Potthoff

We investigate the finite-temperature properties of an Anderson lattice with regularly depleted impurities. The physics of this model is ruled by two different magnetic exchange mechanisms: conventional Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida (RKKY) interaction at weak hybridization strength V and an inverse indirect magnetic exchange (IIME) at strong V, both favoring a ferromagnetic ground state. The stability of ferromagnetic order against thermal fluctuations is systematically studied by static mean-field theory for an effective low-energy spin-only model emerging perturbatively in the strong-coupling limit as well as by dynamical mean-field theory for the full model. The Curie temperature is found at a maximum for a half-filled conduction band and at intermediate hybridization strengths in the crossover regime between RKKY and IIME.

Phys. Rev. B 91, 174420

J. Braun, R. Rausch, M. Potthoff, J. Minár, H. Ebert

A theoretical framework for pump-probe photoemission is presented. The approach is based on a general formulation using the Keldysh formalism for the lesser Green's function to describe the real-time evolution of the electronic degrees of freedom in the initial state after a strong pump pulse that drives the system out of equilibrium. The final state is represented by a time-reversed low-energy electron-diffraction state. Our one-step description is related as close as possible to Pendry's original formulation of the photoemission process. The formalism allows for a quantitative calculation of time-dependent photocurrent for simple metals where a picture of effectively independent electrons is assumed to be reliable. The theory is worked out for valence- and core-electron excitations. It comprises the study of different relativistic effects as a function of the pump-probe delay.

Phys. Rev. B 91, 035119 (2015)

A. Schwabe, M. Hänsel, M. Potthoff

The diluted Kondo lattice model is investigated at strong antiferromagnetic local exchange couplings J, where almost-local Kondo clouds drastically restrict the motion of conduction electrons, giving rise to the possibility of quantum localization of conduction electrons for certain geometries of impurity spins. This localization may lead to the formation of local magnetic moments in the conduction-electron system, and the inverse indirect magnetic exchange (IIME) provided by virtual excitations of the Kondo singlets couples those local moments to the remaining electrons. Exemplarily, we study the one-dimensional two-impurity Kondo model with impurity spins near the chain ends, which supports the formation of conduction-electron magnetic moments at the edges of the chain for sufficiently strong J. Employing degenerate perturbation theory as well as analyzing spin gaps numerically by means of the density-matrix renormalization group, it is shown that the low-energy physics of the model can be well captured within an effective antiferromagnetic Ruderman–Kittel–Kasuya–Yosida-like two-spin model (“RKKY from IIME”) or within an effective central-spin model, depending on edge-spin distance and system size.

Phys. Rev. A 90, 033615 (2014)

F. Hofmann, M. Eckstein, E. Arrigoni, M. Potthoff

The self-energy functional theory (SFT) is generalized to describe the real-time dynamics of correlated lattice-fermion models far from thermal equilibrium. This is achieved by starting from a reformulation of the original equilibrium theory in terms of double-time Green's functions on the Keldysh-Matsubara contour. With the help of a generalized Luttinger-Ward functional, we construct a functional Ω̂[Σ] which is stationary at the physical (nonequilibrium) self-energy Σ and which yields the grand potential of the initial thermal state Ω at the physical point. Nonperturbative approximations can be defined by specifying a reference system that serves to generate trial self-energies. These self-energies are varied by varying the reference system's one-particle parameters on the Keldysh-Matsubara contour. In the case of thermal equilibrium, this approach reduces to the conventional SFT. Contrary to the equilibrium theory, however, “unphysical” variations, i.e., variations that are different on the upper and the lower branches of the Keldysh contour, must be considered to fix the time dependence of the optimal physical parameters via the variational principle. Functional derivatives in the nonequilibrium SFT Euler equation are carried out analytically to derive conditional equations for the variational parameters that are accessible to a numerical evaluation via a time-propagation scheme. Approximations constructed by means of the nonequilibrium SFT are shown to be inherently causal, internally consistent, and to respect macroscopic conservation laws resulting from gauge symmetries of the Hamiltonian. This comprises the nonequilibrium dynamical mean-field theory but also dynamical-impurity and variational-cluster approximations that are specified by reference systems with a finite number of degrees of freedom. In this way, nonperturbative and consistent approximations can be set up, the numerical evaluation of which is accessible to an exact-diagonalization approach.

Phys. Rev. B 88, 165124 (2013)

P. Jurgenowski, M. Potthoff

The real-time dynamics of local occupation numbers in a Hubbard model on a 6×6 square lattice is studied by means of the nonequilibrium generalization of the cluster-perturbation theory. The cluster approach is adapted to studies of two-dimensional lattice systems by using concepts of multiple-scattering theory and a component decomposition of the nonequilibrium Green's function on the Keldysh-Matsubara contour. We consider “classical” initial states formed as tensor products of states on 2×2 plaquettes and trace the effects of the interplaquette hopping in the final-state dynamics. Two different initially excited states are considered on an individual plaquette, a fully polarized staggered spin state (Néel) and a fully polarized charge-density wave (CDW). The final-state dynamics is constrained by a dynamical symmetry; i.e., the time-evolution operator and certain observables are invariant under an antiunitary transformation composed of time reversal, an asymmetric particle-hole, and a staggered sign transformation. We find an interesting interrelation between this dynamical symmetry and the separation of energy and time scales: In the case of a global excitation with all plaquettes excited, the initial Néel and the initial CDW states are linked by the transformation. This prevents an efficient relaxation of the CDW state on the short time scale governing the dynamics of charge degrees of freedom. Contrarily, the CDW state is found to relax much faster than the Néel state in the case of a local excitation on a single plaquette where the symmetry relation between the two states is broken by the coupling to the environment.

Phys. Rev. B 87, 205118 (2013)

A. Schwabe, I. Titvinidze, M. Potthoff

Magnetic moments strongly coupled to the spins of conduction electrons in a nanostructure can confine the conduction-electron motion due to scattering at almost localized Kondo singlets. We study the resulting local-moment formation in the conduction-electron system and the magnetic exchange coupling mediated by the Kondo singlets. Its distance dependence is oscillatory and induces robust ferro- or antiferromagnetic order in multi-impurity systems.

Phys. Rev. B 88, 121107(R) (2013)

F. Hofmann, M. Potthoff

Phys. Rev. B 85, 205127 (2012)

M. Balzer, N. Gdaniec, M.Potthoff

J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 24 035603

M. Balzer, M. Potthoff

Phys. Rev. B 83, 195132 (2011)

S. Aeschlimann, R. Krause, M. Chávez-Cervantes, H. Bromberger, R. Jago, E. Mali, A. Al-Temimy, C. Coletti, A. Cavalleri, I. Gierz

The pseudospin of Dirac electrons in graphene manifests itself in a peculiar momentum anisotropy for photoexcited electron-hole pairs. These interband excitations are in fact forbidden along the direction of the light polarization and are maximum perpendicular to it. Here, we use time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to investigate the resulting unconventional hot carrier dynamics, sampling carrier distributions as a function of energy, and in-plane momentum. We first show that the rapidly-established quasithermal electron distribution initially exhibits an azimuth-dependent temperature, consistent with relaxation through collinear electron-electron scattering. Azimuthal thermalization is found to occur only at longer time delays, at a rate that depends on the substrate and the static doping level. Further, we observe pronounced differences in the electron and hole dynamics in n-doped samples. By simulating the Coulomb- and phonon-mediated carrier dynamics we are able to disentangle the influence of excitation fluence, screening, and doping, and develop a microscopic picture of the carrier dynamics in photoexcited graphene. Our results clarify new aspects of hot carrier dynamics that are unique to Dirac materials, with relevance for photocontrol experiments and optoelectronic device applications.

Phys. Rev. B 96, 020301 (2017)

E. Pomarico, M. Mitrano, H. Bromberger, M. A. Sentef, A. Al-Temimy, C. Coletti, A. Stohr, S. Link, U. Starke, C. Cacho, R. Chapman, E. Springate, A. Cavalleri, I. Gierz

Electron-phonon coupling directly determines the stability of cooperative order in solids, including superconductivity, charge, and spin density waves. Therefore, the ability to enhance or reduce electron-phonon coupling by optical driving may open up new possibilities to steer materials' functionalities, potentially at high speeds. Here, we explore the response of bilayer graphene to dynamical modulation of the lattice, achieved by driving optically active in-plane bond stretching vibrations with femtosecond midinfrared pulses. The driven state is studied by two different ultrafast spectroscopic techniques. First, terahertz time-domain spectroscopy reveals that the Drude scattering rate decreases upon driving. Second, the relaxation rate of hot quasiparticles, as measured by time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, increases. These two independent observations are quantitatively consistent with one another and can be explained by a transient threefold enhancement of the electron-phonon coupling constant. The findings reported here provide useful perspective for related experiments, which reported the enhancement of superconductivity in alkali-doped fullerites when a similar phonon mode was driven.

Phys. Rev. B 95, 024304 (2017)

A. Cavalleri, I. Gierz

We review our recent time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy experiments, which measure the transient electronic structure of optically driven graphene. For pump photon energies in the near infrared (ℏω_pump=950 meV), we have discovered the formation of a population-inverted state near the Dirac point, which may be of interest for the design of THz lasing devices and optical amplifiers. At lower pump photon energies (ℏω_pump<400 meV), for which interband absorption is not possible in doped samples, we find evidence for free carrier absorption. In addition, when mid-infrared pulses are made resonant with an infrared-active in-plane phonon of bilayer graphene (ℏω_pump=200 meV), a transient enhancement of the electron-phonon coupling constant is observed, providing interesting perspective for experiments that report light-enhanced superconductivity in doped fullerites in which a similar lattice mode was excited. All the studies reviewed here have important implications for applications of graphene in optoelectronic devices and for the dynamical engineering of electronic properties with light.

Structural Dynamics 3, 051301 (2016)

Isabella Gierz, Matteo Mitrano, Hubertus Bromberger, Cephise Cacho, Richard Chapman, Emma Springate, Stefan Link, Ulrich Starke, Burkhard Sachs, Martin Eckstein, Tim O. Wehling, Mikhail I. Katsnelson, Alexander Lichtenstein, and Andrea Cavalleri

We modulate the atomic structure of bilayer graphene by driving its lattice at resonance with the in-plane E_1u lattice vibration at 6.3  μm. Using time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (tr-ARPES) with extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) pulses, we measure the response of the Dirac electrons near the K point. We observe that lattice modulation causes anomalous carrier dynamics, with the Dirac electrons reaching lower peak temperatures and relaxing at faster rate compared to when the excitation is applied away from the phonon resonance or in monolayer samples. Frozen phonon calculations predict dramatic band structure changes when the E_1u vibration is driven, which we use to explain the anomalous dynamics observed in the experiment.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 125503 (2015)

Gregor Jotzu, Guido Meier, Alice Cantaluppi, Andrea Cavalleri, Daniele Pontiroli, Mauro Riccò, Arzhang Ardavan, and Moon-Sun Nam

Alkali-doped fullerides are strongly correlated organic superconductors that exhibit high transition temperatures, exceptionally large critical magnetic fields, and a number of other unusual properties. The proximity to a Mott insulating phase is thought to be a crucial ingredient of the underlying physics and may also affect precursors of superconductivity in the normal state above T_c. We report on the observation of a sizable magneto-thermoelectric (Nernst) effect in the normal state of K₃C₆₀, which displays the characteristics of superconducting fluctuations. This nonquasiparticle Nernst effect emerges from an ordinary quasiparticle background below a temperature of 80 K, far above Tc=20  K. At the lowest fields and close to T_c, the scaling of the effect is captured by a model based on Gaussian fluctuations. The behavior at higher magnetic fields displays a symmetry between the magnetic length and the correlation length of the system. The temperature up to which we observe fluctuations is exceptionally high for a three-dimensional isotropic system, where fluctuation effects are expected to be suppressed.

Phys. Rev. X 13, 021008 (2023)

A. Ribak, M. Buzzi, D. Nicoletti, R. Singla, Y. Liu, S. Nakata, B. Keimer, and A. Cavalleri

Coherent optical excitation of certain phonon modes in YBa₂Cu₃O_6+x has been shown to induce superconducting-like interlayer coherence at temperatures higher than T_c. Recent work has associated these phenomena to a parametric excitation and amplification of Josephson plasma polaritons, which are overdamped above Tc but are made coherent by the phonon drive. However, the dissipative response of uncondensed quasiparticles, which do not couple in the same way to the phonon drive, has not been addressed. Here, we investigate both the enhancement of the superfluid density, ωσ₂(ω), and the dissipative response of quasiparticles, σ1(ω), by systematically tuning the duration and energy of the mid-infrared pulse while keeping the peak field fixed. We find that the photoinduced superfluid density saturates to the zero-temperature equilibrium value for pulses made longer than the phonon dephasing time, while the dissipative component continues to grow with increasing pulse duration. We show that superfluid and dissipation remain uncoupled as long as the drive is on, and identify an optimal regime of pump pulse durations for which the superconducting response is maximum and dissipation is minimized.

Phys. Rev. B 107, 104508 (2023)

Jacqueline Bloch , Andrea Cavalleri , Victor Galitski, Mohammad Hafezi & Angel Rubio

An important goal of modern condensed-matter physics involves the search for states of matter with emergent properties and desirable functionalities. Although the tools for material design remain relatively limited, notable advances have been recently achieved by controlling interactions at heterointerfaces, precise alignment of low-dimensional materials and the use of extreme pressures. Here we highlight a paradigm based on controlling light–matter interactions, which provides a way to manipulate and synthesize strongly correlated quantum matter. We consider the case in which both electron–electron and electron–photon interactions are strong and give rise to a variety of phenomena. Photon-mediated superconductivity, cavity fractional quantum Hall physics and optically driven topological phenomena in low dimensions are among the frontiers discussed in this Perspective, which highlights a field that we term here ‘strongly correlated electron–photon science’.

Nature 606, 41–48 (2022)

D. Nicoletti, M. Buzzi, M. Fechner, P. E. Dolgirev, M. H. Michael, J. B. Curtis, E. Demler, G. D. Gu, A. Cavalleri

The interplay between charge order and superconductivity remains one of the central themes of research in quantum materials. In the case of cuprates, the coupling between striped charge fluctuations and local electromagnetic fields is especially important, as it affects transport properties, coherence, and dimensionality of superconducting correlations. Here, we study the emission of coherent terahertz radiation in single-layer cuprates of the La_2-xBa_xCuO₄ family, for which this effect is expected to be forbidden by symmetry. We find that emission vanishes for compounds in which the stripes are quasi-static but is activated when c-axis inversion symmetry is broken by incommensurate or fluctuating charge stripes, such as in La_1.905Ba_0.095CuO4 and in L_a1.845Ba_0.155CuO₄. In this case, terahertz radiation is emitted by surface Josephson plasmons, which are generally dark modes, but couple to free space electromagnetic radiation because of the stripe modulation.

PNAS, 119 (39) e2211670119 (2022)

G. Homann, J. G. Cosme, and L. Mathey

We investigate the Meissner effect in a parametrically driven superconductor using a semiclassical U(1) lattice gauge theory. Specifically, we periodically drive the z-axis tunneling, which leads to an enhancement of the imaginary part of the z-axis conductivity at low frequencies if the driving frequency is blue-detuned from the plasma frequency. This has been proposed as a possible mechanism for light-enhanced interlayer transport in YBCO. In contrast to this enhancement of the conductivity, we find that the screening of magnetic fields is less effective than in equilibrium for blue-detuned driving, while it displays a tendency to be enhanced for red-detuned driving.

New J. Phys. 24, 113007 (2022)

Guido Homann, Jayson G. Cosme, and Ludwig Mathey

We demonstrate that parametric driving of suitable collective modes in cuprate superconductors results in a reflectivity R>1 for frequencies in the low terahertz regime. We propose to exploit this effect for the amplification of coherent terahertz radiation in a laserlike fashion. As an example, we consider the optical driving of Josephson plasma oscillations in a monolayer cuprate at a frequency that is blue-detuned from the Higgs frequency. Analogously, terahertz radiation can be amplified in a bilayer cuprate by driving a phonon resonance at a frequency slightly higher than the upper Josephson plasma frequency. We show this by simulating a driven-dissipative U(1) lattice gauge theory on a three-dimensional lattice, encoding a bilayer structure in the model parameters. We find a parametric amplification of terahertz radiation at zero and nonzero temperature.

Phys. Rev. Research 4, 013181 (2022)

D. Fu, D. Nicoletti, M. Fechner, M. Buzzi, G. D. Gu, and A. Cavalleri

Interlayer transport in high-T_C cuprates is mediated by superconducting tunneling across the C_uO₂ planes. For this reason, the terahertz frequency optical response is dominated by one or more Josephson plasma resonances and becomes highly nonlinear at fields for which the tunneling supercurrents approach their critical value I_C. These large terahertz nonlinearities are in fact a hallmark of superconducting transport. Surprisingly, however, they have been documented in La_2−xBa_xC_uO₄ (LBCO) also above T_C for doping values near x=1/8 and interpreted as an indication of superfluidity in the stripe phase. Here, electric-field-induced second harmonic is used to study the dynamics of time-dependent interlayer voltages when LBCO is driven with large-amplitude terahertz pulses, in search of other characteristic signatures of Josephson tunneling in the normal state. We show that this method is sensitive to the voltage anomalies associated with 2π Josephson phase slips, which near x=1/8 are observed both below and above T_C. These results document a regime of nonlinear transport that shares features of fluctuating stripes and superconducting phase dynamics.

Phys. Rev. B 105, L020502 (2022)

M. Buzzi, D. Nicoletti, S. Fava, G. Jotzu, K. Miyagawa, K. Kanoda, A. Henderson, T. Siegrist, J. A. Schlueter, M.-S. Nam, A. Ardavan, and A. Cavalleri

Resonant optical excitation of certain molecular vibrations in κ−(BEDT−TTF)₂Cu[N(CN)₂]Br has been shown to induce transient superconductinglike optical properties at temperatures far above equilibrium T_c. Here, we report experiments across the bandwidth-tuned phase diagram of this class of materials, and study the Mott insulator κ−(BEDT−TTF)₂Cu[N(CN)₂]Cl and the metallic compound κ−(BEDT−TTF)₂Cu(NCS)₂. We find nonequilibrium photoinduced superconductivity only in κ−(BEDT−TTF)₂Cu[N(CN)₂]Br, indicating that the proximity to the Mott insulating phase and possibly the presence of preexisting superconducting fluctuations are prerequisites for this effect.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 197002 (2021)

Michele Buzzi, Gregor Jotzu, Andrea Cavalleri, J. Ignacio Cirac, Eugene A. Demler, Bertrand I. Halperin, Mikhail D. Lukin, Tao Shi, Yao Wang, and Daniel Podolsky

We propose a novel nonequilibrium phenomenon, through which a prompt quench from a metal to a transient superconducting state can induce large oscillations of the order parameter amplitude. We argue that this oscillating mode acts as a source of parametric amplification of the incident radiation. We report experimental results on optically driven K₃C₆₀ that are consistent with these predictions. The effect is found to disappear when the onset of the excitation becomes slower than the Higgs-mode period, consistent with the theory proposed here. These results open new possibilities for the use of collective modes in many-body systems to induce nonlinear optical effects.

Phys. Rev. X 11, 011055 (2021)

Guido Homann, Jayson G. Cosme, Junichi Okamoto, and Ludwig Mathey

We put forth a mechanism for enhancing the interlayer transport in cuprate superconductors, by optically driving plasmonic excitations along the c axis with a frequency that is blue-detuned from the Higgs frequency. The plasmonic excitations induce a collective oscillation of the Higgs field which induces a parametric enhancement of the superconducting response, as we demonstrate with a minimal analytical model. Furthermore, we perform simulations of a particle-hole symmetric U(1) lattice gauge theory and find good agreement with our analytical prediction. We map out the renormalization of the interlayer coupling as a function of the parameters of the optical field and demonstrate that the Higgs mode mediated enhancement can be larger than 50%.

Phys. Rev. B 103, 224503 (2021)

Marios H. Michael, Alexander von Hoegen, Michael Fechner, Michael Först, Andrea Cavalleri, and Eugene Demler

Nonlinear interactions between collective modes play a definitive role in far out of equilibrium dynamics of strongly correlated electron systems. Understanding and utilizing these interactions is crucial to photocontrol of quantum many-body states. One of the most surprising examples of strong mode coupling is the interaction between apical oxygen phonons and Josephson plasmons in bilayer YBa₂Cu₃O_6+x superconductors. Experiments by Hu et al. [Nat. Mater. 13, 705 (2014)] and Kaiser et al. [Phys. Rev. B 89, 184516 (2014)] showed that below _Tc, photoexcitation of phonons leads to enhancement and frequency shifts of Josephson plasmon edges, while above Tc, photoexcited phonons induce plasmon edges even when there are no discernible features in the equilibrium reflectivity spectrum. Recent experiments by von Hoegen et al. (arXiv:1911.08284) also observed parametric generation of Josephson plasmons from photoexcited phonons both below Tc and in the pseudogap phase. In this paper, we present a theoretical model of three-wave phonon-plasmon interaction arising from changes of the in-plane superfluid stiffness caused by the apical oxygen motion. Analysis of the parametric instability of plasmons based on this model gives frequencies of the most unstable plasmons that are in agreement with experimental observations. We also discuss how strong parametric excitation of Josephson plasmons can explain pump-induced changes in the terahertz reflectivity of YBa₂Cu₃O_6+x in the superconducting state, including frequency shifts and sharpening of Josephson plasmon edges, as well as appearance of a new peak around 2 THz. An interesting feature of this model is that overdamped Josephson plasmons do not give any discernible features in reflectivity in equilibrium, but can develop plasmon edges when parametrically excited. We suggest that this mechanism explains photoinduced plasmon edges in the pseudogap phase of YBa₂Cu₃O_6+x.

Phys. Rev. B 102, 174505 (2020)

Hongmin Gao, Frank Schlawin, Michele Buzzi, Andrea Cavalleri, Dieter Jaksch

We demonstrate how virtual scattering of laser photons inside a cavity via two-photon processes can induce controllable long-range electron interactions in two-dimensional materials. We show that laser light that is red (blue) detuned from the cavity yields attractive (repulsive) interactions whose strength is proportional to the laser intensity. Furthermore, we find that the interactions are not screened effectively except at very low frequencies. For realistic cavity parameters, laser-induced heating of the electrons by inelastic photon scattering is suppressed and coherent electron interactions dominate. When the interactions are attractive, they cause an instability in the Cooper channel at a temperature proportional to the square root of the driving intensity. Our results provide a novel route for engineering electron interactions in a wide range of two-dimensional materials including AB-stacked bilayer graphene and the conducting interface between LaAlO₃ and SrTiO₃.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 125, 053602 (2020)

M. Buzzi, D. Nicoletti, M. Fechner, N. Tancogne-Dejean, M. A. Sentef, A. Georges, T. Biesner, E. Uykur, M. Dressel, A. Henderson, T. Siegrist, J. A. Schlueter, K. Miyagawa, K. Kanoda, M.-S. Nam, A. Ardavan, J. Coulthard, J. Tindall, F. Schlawin, D. Jaksch, and A. Cavalleri

The properties of organic conductors are often tuned by the application of chemical or external pressure, which change orbital overlaps and electronic bandwidths while leaving the molecular building blocks virtually unperturbed. Here, we show that, unlike any other method, light can be used to manipulate the local electronic properties at the molecular sites, giving rise to new emergent properties. Targeted molecular excitations in the charge-transfer salt κ−(BEDT−TTF)₂Cu[N(CN)₂]Br induce a colossal increase in carrier mobility and the opening of a superconducting optical gap. Both features track the density of quasiparticles of the equilibrium metal and can be observed up to a characteristic coherence temperature T^∗≃50  K, far higher than the equilibrium transition temperature T_C=12.5  K. Notably, the large optical gap achieved by photoexcitation is not observed in the equilibrium superconductor, pointing to a light-induced state that is different from that obtained by cooling. First-principles calculations and model Hamiltonian dynamics predict a transient state with long-range pairing correlations, providing a possible physical scenario for photomolecular superconductivity.

Phys. Rev. X 10, 031028 (2020)

G. Homann, J. G. Cosme, and L. Mathey

We propose to induce a time-crystalline state in a high-T_c superconductor, by optically driving a sum resonance of the Higgs mode and a Josephson plasma mode. The generic cubic process that couples these fundamental excitations converts driving of the sum resonance into simultaneous resonant driving of both modes, resulting in an incommensurate subharmonic motion. We use a numerical implementation of a semiclassical driven-dissipative lattice gauge theory on a three-dimensional layered lattice, which models the geometry of cuprate superconductors, to demonstrate the robustness of this motion against thermal fluctuations. We demonstrate this light-induced time-crystalline phase for mono- and bilayer systems and show that this order can be detected for pulsed driving under realistic technological conditions.

Phys. Rev. Res. 2, 043214 (2020)

Ali Sanayei, Pascal Naidon, and Ludwig Mathey

We expand the Cooper problem by including a third electron in an otherwise empty band. We demonstrate the formation of a trimer state of two electrons above the Fermi sea and the third electron, for sufficiently strong interband attractive interaction. We show that the critical interaction strength is the lowest for small Fermi velocities, large masses of the additional electron, and large Debye energy. This trimer state competes with the formation of the two-electron Cooper pair, and can be created transiently via optical pumping.

Phys. Rev. Research 2, 013341 (2020)

B. Liu, M. Först, M. Fechner, D. Nicoletti, J. Porras, B. Keimer, A. Cavalleri

Optical excitation in the cuprates has been shown to induce transient superconducting correlations above the thermodynamic transition temperature T_C, as evidenced by the terahertz-frequency optical properties in the nonequilibrium state. In YBa₂Cu₃O6_+x, this phenomenon has so far been associated with the nonlinear excitation of certain lattice modes and the creation of new crystal structures. In other compounds, like La_2−xBa_xCuO₄, similar effects were reported also for excitation at near-infrared frequencies, and were interpreted as a signature of the melting of competing orders. However, to date, it has not been possible to systematically tune the pump frequency widely in any one compound, to comprehensively compare the frequency-dependent photosusceptibility for this phenomenon. Here, we make use of a newly developed nonlinear optical device, which generates widely tunable high-intensity femtosecond pulses, to excite YBa₂Cu₃O_6.5 throughout the entire optical spectrum (3–750 THz). In the far-infrared region (3–24 THz), signatures of nonequilibrium superconductivity are induced only for excitation of the 16.4- and 19.2-THz vibrational modes that drive c-axis apical oxygen atomic positions. For higher driving frequencies (25–750 THz), a second resonance is observed around the charge transfer band edge at approximately 350 THz. These findings highlight the importance of coupling to the electronic structure of the CuO₂ planes, mediated either by a phonon or by charge transfer.

Physical Review X 10, 011053 (2020)

Yuto Ashida, Ataç İmamoğlu, Jérôme Faist, Dieter Jaksch, Andrea Cavalleri, and Eugene Demler

The light-matter interaction can be utilized to qualitatively alter physical properties of materials. Recent theoretical and experimental studies have explored this possibility of controlling matter by light based on driving many-body systems via strong classical electromagnetic radiation, leading to a time-dependent Hamiltonian for electronic or lattice degrees of freedom. To avoid inevitable heating, pump-probe setups with ultrashort laser pulses have so far been used to study transient light-induced modifications in materials. Here, we pursue yet another direction of controlling quantum matter by modifying quantum fluctuations of its electromagnetic environment. In contrast to earlier proposals on light-enhanced electron-electron interactions, we consider a dipolar quantum many-body system embedded in a cavity composed of metal mirrors and formulate a theoretical framework to manipulate its equilibrium properties on the basis of quantum light-matter interaction. We analyze hybridization of different types of the fundamental excitations, including dipolar phonons, cavity photons, and plasmons in metal mirrors, arising from the cavity confinement in the regime of strong light-matter interaction. This hybridization qualitatively alters the nature of the collective excitations and can be used to selectively control energy-level structures in a wide range of platforms. Most notably, in quantum paraelectrics, we show that the cavity-induced softening of infrared optical phonons enhances the ferroelectric phase in comparison with the bulk materials. Our findings suggest an intriguing possibility of inducing a superradiant-type transition via the light-matter coupling without external pumping. We also discuss possible applications of the cavity-induced modifications in collective excitations to molecular materials and excitonic devices.

Phys. Rev. X 10, 041027 (2020)

M. Nuske, L. Broers, B. Schulte, G. Jotzu, S. A. Sato, A. Cavalleri, A. Rubio, J. W. McIver, L. Mathey

We demonstrate how the properties of light-induced electronic Floquet states in solids impact natural physical observables, such as transport properties, by capturing the environmental influence on the electrons. We include the environment as dissipative processes, such as inter-band decay and dephasing, often ignored in Floquet predictions. These dissipative processes determine the Floquet band occupations of the emergent steady state, by balancing out the optical driving force. In order to benchmark and illustrate our framework for Floquet physics in a realistic solid, we consider the light-induced Hall conductivity in graphene recently reported by J.~W.~McIver, et al., Nature Physics (2020). We show that the Hall conductivity is estimated by the Berry flux of the occupied states of the light-induced Floquet bands, in addition to the kinetic contribution given by the average band velocity. Hence, Floquet theory provides an interpretation of this Hall conductivity as a geometric-dissipative effect. We demonstrate this mechanism within a master equation formalism, and obtain good quantitative agreement with the experimentally measured Hall conductivity, underscoring the validity of this approach which establishes a broadly applicable framework for the understanding of ultrafast non-equilibrium dynamics in solids. 

Phys. Rev. Research 2, 043408 (2020)

Michele Buzzi, Michael Först and Andrea Cavalleri

Strong interactions between electrons give rise to the complexity of quantum materials, which exhibit exotic functional properties and extreme susceptibility to external perturbations. A growing research trend involves the study of these materials away from equilibrium, especially in cases in which the stimulation with optical pulses can coherently enhance cooperative orders. Time-resolved X-ray probes are integral to this type of research, as they can be used to track atomic and electronic structures as they evolve on ultrafast timescales. Here, we review a series of recent experiments where femtosecond X-ray diffraction was used to measure dynamics of complex solids.

This article is part of the theme issue ‘Measurement of ultrafast electronic and structural dynamics with X-rays’.

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A.377:20170478.20170478. (2019)

Optical excitation of stripe-ordered La₂−_xBa_xCuO₄ has been shown to transiently enhance superconducting tunneling between the CuO₂ planes. This effect was revealed by a blueshift, or by the appearance of a Josephson plasma resonance in the terahertz-frequency optical properties. Here, we show that this photoinduced state can be strengthened by the application of high external magnetic fields oriented along the c axis. For a 7 T field, we observe up to a tenfold enhancement in the transient interlayer phase correlation length, accompanied by a twofold increase in the relaxation time of the photoinduced state. These observations are highly surprising, since static magnetic fields suppress interlayer Josephson tunneling and stabilize stripe order at equilibrium. We interpret our data as an indication that optically enhanced interlayer coupling in La₂−_xBa_xCuO₄ does not originate from a simple optical melting of stripes, as previously hypothesized. Rather, we speculate that the photoinduced state may emerge from activated tunneling between optically excited stripes in adjacent planes.

Physical Review Letters,121, 267003 (2018)

A. Cantaluppi, M. Buzzi, G. Jotzu, D. Nicoletti, M. Mitrano, D. Pontiroli, M. Riccò, A. Perucchi, P. Di Pietro, A. Cavalleri

Optical excitation at terahertz frequencies has emerged as an effective means to dynamically manipulate complex materials. In the molecular solid K₃C₆₀, short mid-infrared pulses transform the high-temperature metal into a non-equilibrium state with the optical properties of a superconductor. Here we tune this effect with hydrostatic pressure and find that the superconducting-like features gradually disappear at around 0.3 GPa. Reduction with pressure underscores the similarity with the equilibrium superconducting phase of K₃C₆₀, in which a larger electronic bandwidth induced by pressure is also detrimental for pairing. Crucially, our observation excludes alternative interpretations based on a high-mobility metallic phase. The pressure dependence also suggests that transient, incipient superconductivity occurs far above the 150 K hypothesized previously, and rather extends all the way to room temperature.

Nature Physics, 14, 837–841 (2018)

A. von Hoegen, R. Mankowsky, M. Fechner, M. Först, A. Cavalleri

Nonlinear optical techniques at visible frequencies have long been applied to condensed matter spectroscopy. However, because many important excitations of solids are found at low energies, much can be gained from the extension of nonlinear optics to mid-infrared and terahertz frequencies. For example, the nonlinear excitation of lattice vibrations has enabled the dynamic control of material functions. So far it has only been possible to exploit second-order phonon nonlinearities9 at terahertz field strengths near one million volts per centimetre. Here we achieve an order-of-magnitude increase in field strength and explore higher-order phonon nonlinearities. We excite up to five harmonics of the A₁ (transverse optical) phonon mode in the ferroelectric material lithium niobate. By using ultrashort mid-infrared laser pulses to drive the atoms far from their equilibrium positions, and measuring the large-amplitude atomic trajectories, we can sample the interatomic potential of lithium niobate, providing a benchmark for ab initio calculations for the material. Tomography of the energy surface by high-order nonlinear phononics could benefit many aspects of materials research, including the study of classical and quantum phase transitions.

Nature, 555, 79–82 (2018)

M. Buzzi, M. Först, R. Mankowsky, and A. Cavalleri

Optical pulses are routinely used to drive dynamic changes in the properties of solids. In quantum materials, many new phenomena have been discovered, including ultrafast transitions between electronic phases, switching of ferroic orders and non-equilibrium emergent behaviours, such as photoinduced superconductivity. Understanding the underlying non-equilibrium physics requires detailed measurements of multiple microscopic degrees of freedom at ultrafast time resolution. Femtosecond X-rays are key to this endeavour, as they can probe the dynamics of structural, electronic and magnetic degrees of freedom. Here, we review a series of representative experimental studies in which ultrashort X-ray pulses from free-electron lasers have been used, opening up new horizons for materials research.

Nature Reviews Materials, 3, pages 299–311 (2018)

W. Hu, D. Nicoletti, A. V. Boris, B. Keimer and A. Cavalleri

We report on an investigation of the redistribution of interlayer coherence in the trilayer cuprate Bi₂Sr₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀. The experiment is performed under the same apical-oxygen phonon excitation discussed in the past for the bilayer cuprate YBa₂Cu₃O_6.5. In Bi₂Sr₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀, we observe a similar spectral weight loss at the transverse plasma mode resonance as that seen in YBa₂Cu₃O_6.5. However, this feature is not accompanied by the light-enhanced interlayer coherence that was found in YBa₂Cu₃O_6+x, for which the transverse plasma mode is observed at equilibrium even in the normal state. These new observations offer an experimental perspective in the context of the physics of light-enhanced interlayer coupling in various cuprates.

Physical Reviev B, 95, 104508 (2017)

J. Okamoto, W. Hu, A. Cavalleri, L. Mathey

Recent pump-probe experiments reported an enhancement of superconducting transport along the c axis of underdoped YBa₂Cu₃O_6+δ (YBCO), induced by a midinfrared optical pump pulse tuned to a specific lattice vibration. To understand this transient nonequilibrium state, we develop a pump-probe formalism for a stack of Josephson junctions, and we consider the tunneling strengths in the presence of modulation with an ultrashort optical pulse. We demonstrate that a transient enhancement of the Josephson coupling can be obtained for pulsed excitation and that this can be even larger than in a continuously driven steady state. Especially interesting is the conclusion that the effect is largest when the material is parametrically driven at a frequency immediately above the plasma frequency, in agreement with what is found experimentally. For bilayer Josephson junctions, an enhancement similar to that experimentally is predicted below the critical temperature T_c. This model reproduces the essential features of the enhancement measured below T_c. To reproduce the experimental results above T_c, we will explore extensions of this model, such as in-plane and amplitude fluctuations, elsewhere.

Phys. Rev. B 96, 144505 (2017)

D. Nicoletti, E. Casandruc, D. Fu, P. Giraldo-Gallo, I. Fisher, A. Cavalleri

We present measurements of transient photoconductivity in BaPb_1−xBi_xO₃ (BPBO)––a poorly understood material belonging to the bismuthate family, which has been coined “the other high-temperature superconductor.” The phase diagram of BPBO encompasses charge-density-wave (CDW) order in BaBiO₃ (x = 1), through superconductivity for intermediate compositions, to bad metal behavior in BaPbO₃ (x = 0). We present evidence for the coexistence of CDW order and superconductivity for underdoped compositions of BPBO––something that has been discussed previously, but never definitively established. These results are especially timely given that CDW correlations have recently been found in some underdoped cuprate superconductors, pointing toward a surprising commonality between some aspects of these materials. Our measurements also put energy scales on the associated charge order.

PNAS, 114,34, 9020–9025 (2017)

S. Aeschlimann, R. Krause, M. Chávez-Cervantes, H. Bromberger, R. Jago, E. Mali, A. Al-Temimy, C. Coletti, A. Cavalleri, I. Gierz

The pseudospin of Dirac electrons in graphene manifests itself in a peculiar momentum anisotropy for photoexcited electron-hole pairs. These interband excitations are in fact forbidden along the direction of the light polarization and are maximum perpendicular to it. Here, we use time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to investigate the resulting unconventional hot carrier dynamics, sampling carrier distributions as a function of energy, and in-plane momentum. We first show that the rapidly-established quasithermal electron distribution initially exhibits an azimuth-dependent temperature, consistent with relaxation through collinear electron-electron scattering. Azimuthal thermalization is found to occur only at longer time delays, at a rate that depends on the substrate and the static doping level. Further, we observe pronounced differences in the electron and hole dynamics in n-doped samples. By simulating the Coulomb- and phonon-mediated carrier dynamics we are able to disentangle the influence of excitation fluence, screening, and doping, and develop a microscopic picture of the carrier dynamics in photoexcited graphene. Our results clarify new aspects of hot carrier dynamics that are unique to Dirac materials, with relevance for photocontrol experiments and optoelectronic device applications.

Phys. Rev. B 96, 020301 (2017)

E. Pomarico, M. Mitrano, H. Bromberger, M. A. Sentef, A. Al-Temimy, C. Coletti, A. Stohr, S. Link, U. Starke, C. Cacho, R. Chapman, E. Springate, A. Cavalleri, I. Gierz

Electron-phonon coupling directly determines the stability of cooperative order in solids, including superconductivity, charge, and spin density waves. Therefore, the ability to enhance or reduce electron-phonon coupling by optical driving may open up new possibilities to steer materials' functionalities, potentially at high speeds. Here, we explore the response of bilayer graphene to dynamical modulation of the lattice, achieved by driving optically active in-plane bond stretching vibrations with femtosecond midinfrared pulses. The driven state is studied by two different ultrafast spectroscopic techniques. First, terahertz time-domain spectroscopy reveals that the Drude scattering rate decreases upon driving. Second, the relaxation rate of hot quasiparticles, as measured by time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, increases. These two independent observations are quantitatively consistent with one another and can be explained by a transient threefold enhancement of the electron-phonon coupling constant. The findings reported here provide useful perspective for related experiments, which reported the enhancement of superconductivity in alkali-doped fullerites when a similar phonon mode was driven.

Phys. Rev. B 95, 024304 (2017)

S. Rajasekaran, E. Casandruc, Y. Laplace, D. Nicoletti, G. D. Gu, S. R. Clark, D. Jaksch & A. Cavalleri

Many applications in photonics require all-optical manipulation of plasma waves, which can concentrate electromagnetic energy on sub-wavelength length scales. This is difficult in metallic plasmas because of their small optical nonlinearities. Some layered superconductors support Josephson plasma waves, involving oscillatory tunnelling of the superfluid between capacitively coupled planes. Josephson plasma waves are also highly nonlinear, and exhibit striking phenomena such as cooperative emission of coherent terahertz radiation, superconductor–metal oscillations and soliton formation. Here, we show that terahertz Josephson plasma waves can be parametrically amplified through the cubic tunnelling nonlinearity in a cuprate superconductor. Parametric amplification is sensitive to the relative phase between pump and seed waves, and may be optimized to achieve squeezing of the order-parameter phase fluctuations or terahertz single-photon devices.

Nature Physics, 12, 1012–1016 (2016)

D. Nicoletti, A. Cavalleri

Strong optical pulses at mid-infrared and terahertz frequencies have recently emerged as powerful tools to manipulate and control the solid state and especially complex condensed matter systems with strongly correlated electrons. The recent developments in high-power sources in the 0.1–30 THz frequency range, both from table-top laser systems and from free-electron lasers, have provided access to excitations of molecules and solids, which can be stimulated at their resonance frequencies. Amongst these, we discuss free electrons in metals, superconducting gaps and Josephson plasmons in layered superconductors, and vibrational modes of the crystal lattice (phonons), as well as magnetic excitations. This review provides an overview and illustrative examples of how intense terahertz transients can be used to resonantly control matter, with particular focus on strongly correlated electron systems and high-temperature superconductors.

Advances in Optics and Photonics, 8, 3, pp. 401-464 (2016)

C. R. Hunt, D. Nicoletti, S. Kaiser, D. Pröpper, T. Loew, J. Porras, B. Keimer, and A. Cavalleri

Optical excitation of apical oxygen vibrations in YBa₂Cu₃O_6+δ has been shown to enhance its c axis superconducting-phase rigidity, as evidenced by a transient blueshift of the equilibrium interbilayer Josephson plasma resonance. Surprisingly, a transient c axis plasma mode could also be induced above Tc by the same apical oxygen excitation, suggesting light activated superfluid tunneling throughout the pseudogap phase of YBa₂Cu₃O_6+δ. However, despite the similarities between the transient plasma mode above Tc and the equilibrium Josephson plasmon, alternative explanations involving high-mobility quasiparticle transport should be considered. Here, we report an extensive study of the relaxation of the light induced plasmon into the equilibrium incoherent phase. These new experiments allow for a critical assessment of the nature of this mode. We determine that the transient plasma relaxes through a collapse of its coherence length rather than its carrier (or superfluid) density. These observations are not easily reconciled with quasiparticle interlayer transport and rather support transient superfluid tunneling as the origin of the light induced interlayer coupling in YBa₂Cu₃O_6+δ.

Physical Review B, 94, 224303 (2016)

M. Mitrano, A. Cantaluppi, D. Nicoletti, S. Kaiser, A. Perucchi, S. Lupi, P. Di Pietro, D. Pontiroli, M. Riccò, S. R. Clark, D. Jaksch, and A. Cavalleri

The non-equilibrium control of emergent phenomena in solids is an important research frontier, encompassing effects such as the optical enhancement of superconductivity1. Nonlinear excitation2,3 of certain phonons in bilayer copper oxides was recently shown to induce superconducting-like optical properties at temperatures far greater than the superconducting transition temperature, Tc (refs 4, 5, 6). This effect was accompanied by the disruption of competing charge-density-wave correlations7,8, which explained some but not all of the experimental results. Here we report a similar phenomenon in a very different compound, K₃C₆₀. By exciting metallic K₃C₆₀ with mid-infrared optical pulses, we induce a large increase in carrier mobility, accompanied by the opening of a gap in the optical conductivity. These same signatures are observed at equilibrium when cooling metallic K₃C₆₀ below Tc (20 kelvin). Although optical techniques alone cannot unequivocally identify non-equilibrium high-temperature superconductivity, we propose this as a possible explanation of our results.

Nature, 530, 461 (2016)

Jun-ichi Okamoto, Andrea Cavalleri, and Ludwig Mathey

Motivated by recent pump-probe experiments indicating enhanced coherent c-axis transport in underdoped YBCO, we study Josephson junctions periodically driven by optical pulses. We propose a mechanism for this observation by demonstrating that a parametrically driven Josephson junction shows an enhanced imaginary part of the low-frequency conductivity when the driving frequency is above the plasma frequency, implying an effectively enhanced Josephson coupling. We generalize this analysis to a bilayer system of Josephson junctions modeling YBCO. Again, the Josephson coupling is enhanced when the pump frequency is blue detuned to either of the two plasma frequencies of the material. We show that the emergent driven state is a genuine, nonequilibrium superconducting state, in which equilibrium relations between the Josephson coupling, current fluctuations, and the critical current no longer hold.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 117, 227001 (2016)

A. Cavalleri, I. Gierz

We review our recent time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy experiments, which measure the transient electronic structure of optically driven graphene. For pump photon energies in the near infrared (ℏω_pump=950 meV), we have discovered the formation of a population-inverted state near the Dirac point, which may be of interest for the design of THz lasing devices and optical amplifiers. At lower pump photon energies (ℏω_pump<400 meV), for which interband absorption is not possible in doped samples, we find evidence for free carrier absorption. In addition, when mid-infrared pulses are made resonant with an infrared-active in-plane phonon of bilayer graphene (ℏω_pump=200 meV), a transient enhancement of the electron-phonon coupling constant is observed, providing interesting perspective for experiments that report light-enhanced superconductivity in doped fullerites in which a similar lattice mode was excited. All the studies reviewed here have important implications for applications of graphene in optoelectronic devices and for the dynamical engineering of electronic properties with light.

Structural Dynamics 3, 051301 (2016)

E. Casandruc, D. Nicoletti, S. Rajasekaran, Y. Laplace, V. Khanna, G. D. Gu, J. P. Hill, and A. Cavalleri

We analyze the pump wavelength dependence for the photoinduced enhancement of interlayer coupling in La_1.885Ba_0.115CuO₄, which is promoted by optical melting of the stripe order. In the equilibrium superconducting state (T<TC=13K) in which stripes and superconductivity coexist, time-domain terahertz spectroscopy reveals a photoinduced blueshift of the Josephson plasma resonance after excitation with optical pulses polarized perpendicular to the CuO₂ planes. In the striped nonsuperconducting state (T_C<T<T_SO≃40K) a transient plasma resonance similar to that seen below T_C appears from a featureless equilibrium reflectivity. Most strikingly, both these effects become stronger upon tuning of the pump wavelength from the midinfrared to the visible, underscoring an unconventional competition between stripe order and superconductivity, which occurs on energy scales far above the ordering temperature.

Physical Review B, 91, 17 (2015)

R. Höppner, B. Zhu, T. Rexin, A. Cavalleri, and L. Mathey

We study the thermally fluctuating state of a bilayer cuprate superconductor under the periodic action of a staggered field oscillating at optical frequencies. This analysis distills essential elements of the recently discovered phenomenon of light-enhanced coherence in YBa₂Cu₃O_6+x, which was achieved by periodically driving infrared active apical oxygen distortions. The effect of a staggered periodic perturbation is studied using a Langevin and Fokker-Planck description of driven, coupled Josephson junctions, which represent two neighboring pairs of layers and their two plasmons. In a toy model including only two junctions, we demonstrate that the external driving leads to a suppression of phase fluctuations of the low-energy plasmon, an effect which is amplified via the resonance of the high-energy plasmon. When extending the modeling to the full layers, we find that this reduction becomes far more pronounced, with a striking suppression of the low-energy fluctuations, as visible in the power spectrum. We also find that this effect acts on the in-plane fluctuations, which are reduced on long length scales. All these findings provide a physical framework to describe light control in cuprates.

Phys. Rev. B 91, 104507 (2015)

Isabella Gierz, Matteo Mitrano, Hubertus Bromberger, Cephise Cacho, Richard Chapman, Emma Springate, Stefan Link, Ulrich Starke, Burkhard Sachs, Martin Eckstein, Tim O. Wehling, Mikhail I. Katsnelson, Alexander Lichtenstein, and Andrea Cavalleri

We modulate the atomic structure of bilayer graphene by driving its lattice at resonance with the in-plane E_1u lattice vibration at 6.3  μm. Using time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (tr-ARPES) with extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) pulses, we measure the response of the Dirac electrons near the K point. We observe that lattice modulation causes anomalous carrier dynamics, with the Dirac electrons reaching lower peak temperatures and relaxing at faster rate compared to when the excitation is applied away from the phonon resonance or in monolayer samples. Frozen phonon calculations predict dramatic band structure changes when the E_1u vibration is driven, which we use to explain the anomalous dynamics observed in the experiment.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 125503 (2015)

Emil Viñas Boström, Tahereh Sadat Parvini, James W. McIver, Angel Rubio, Silvia Viola Kusminskiy, and Michael A. Sentef

Controlling edge states of topological magnon insulators is a promising route to stable spintronics devices. However, to experimentally ascertain the topology of magnon bands is a challenging task. Here we derive a fundamental relation between the light-matter coupling and the quantum geometry of magnon states. This allows us to establish the two-magnon Raman circular dichroism as an optical probe of magnon topology in honeycomb magnets, in particular of the Chern number and the topological gap. Our results pave the way for interfacing light and topological magnons in functional quantum devices.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 130, 026701 (2023)

Emil Viñas Boström, Tahereh Sadat Parvini, James W. McIver, Angel Rubio, Silvia Viola Kusminskiy, and Michael A. Sentef

We introduce the magnon circular photogalvanic effect enabled by two-magnon Raman scattering. This provides an all-optical pathway to the generation of directed magnon currents with circularly polarized light in honeycomb antiferromagnetic insulators. The effect is the leading order contribution to magnon photocurrent generation via optical fields. Control of the magnon current by the polarization and angle of incidence of the laser is demonstrated. Experimental detection by sizable inverse spin Hall voltages in platinum contacts is proposed.

Phys. Rev. B 104, L100404 (2021)

Alberto de la Torre, Dante M. Kennes, Martin Claassen, Simon Gerber, James W. McIver, and Michael A. Sentef.

Recent progress in utilizing ultrafast light-matter interaction to control the macroscopic properties of quantum materials is reviewed. Particular emphasis is placed on photoinduced phenomena that do not result from ultrafast heating effects but rather emerge from microscopic processes that are inherently nonthermal in nature. Many of these processes can be described as transient modifications to the free energy landscape resulting from the redistribution of quasiparticle populations, the dynamical modification of coupling strengths, and the resonant driving of the crystal lattice. Other pathways result from the coherent dressing of a material’s quantum states by the light field. A selection of recently discovered effects leveraging these mechanisms, as well as the technological advances that led to their discovery, is discussed. A road map for how the field can harness these nonthermal pathways to create new functionalities is presented.

Rev. Mod. Phys. 93, 041002 (2021)

M. Nuske, L. Broers, B. Schulte, G. Jotzu, S. A. Sato, A. Cavalleri, A. Rubio, J. W. McIver, L. Mathey

We demonstrate how the properties of light-induced electronic Floquet states in solids impact natural physical observables, such as transport properties, by capturing the environmental influence on the electrons. We include the environment as dissipative processes, such as inter-band decay and dephasing, often ignored in Floquet predictions. These dissipative processes determine the Floquet band occupations of the emergent steady state, by balancing out the optical driving force. In order to benchmark and illustrate our framework for Floquet physics in a realistic solid, we consider the light-induced Hall conductivity in graphene recently reported by J.~W.~McIver, et al., Nature Physics (2020). We show that the Hall conductivity is estimated by the Berry flux of the occupied states of the light-induced Floquet bands, in addition to the kinetic contribution given by the average band velocity. Hence, Floquet theory provides an interpretation of this Hall conductivity as a geometric-dissipative effect. We demonstrate this mechanism within a master equation formalism, and obtain good quantitative agreement with the experimentally measured Hall conductivity, underscoring the validity of this approach which establishes a broadly applicable framework for the understanding of ultrafast non-equilibrium dynamics in solids. 

Phys. Rev. Research 2, 043408 (2020)

Lukas Broers, Ludwig Mathey

Comm. Phys. 4, 248 (2021)

Lukas Broers, Ludwig Mathey

Phys. Rev. Research 4, 013057 (2022)

M. Nuske, L. Mathey

Physical Review B 104, 224305 (2021)

Lukas Broers, Ludwig Mathey

SciPost Phys. 14, 018 (2023)

E. Wang, J. D. Adelinia, M. Chavez-Cervantes, T. Matsuyama, M. Fechner, M. Buzzi, G. Meier, A. Cavalleri

Nature Communications 14, 7233 (2023)

S. A. Sato, J. W. McIver, M. Nuske, P. Tang, G. Jotzu, B. Schulte, H. Hübener, U. De Giovannini, L. Mathey, M. A. Sentef, A. Cavalleri, and A. Rubio

We employ a quantum Liouville equation with relaxation to model the recently observed anomalous Hall effect in graphene irradiated by an ultrafast pulse of circularly polarized light. In the weak-field regime, we demonstrate that the Hall effect originates from an asymmetric population of photocarriers in the Dirac bands. By contrast, in the strong-field regime, the system is driven into a nonequilibrium steady state that is well described by topologically nontrivial Floquet-Bloch bands. Here, the anomalous Hall current originates from the combination of a population imbalance in these dressed bands together with a smaller anomalous velocity contribution arising from their Berry curvature. This robust and general finding enables the simulation of electrical transport from light-induced Floquet-Bloch bands in an experimentally relevant parameter regime and creates a pathway to designing ultrafast quantum devices with Floquet-engineered transport properties.

Phys. Rev. B 99, 214302 (2019)

Lucas Schneider, Khai That Ton, Ioannis Ioannidis, Jannis Neuhaus-Steinmetz, Thore Posske, Roland Wiesendanger, and Jens Wiebe

Gapless materials in electronic contact with superconductors acquire proximity-induced superconductivity in a region near the interface. Numerous proposals build on this addition of electron pairing to originally non-superconducting systems and predict intriguing phases of matter, including topological, odd-frequency, nodal-point or Fulde–Ferrell–Larkin–Ovchinnikov superconductivity. Here we investigate the most miniature example of the proximity effect on only a single spin-degenerate quantum level of a surface state confined in a quantum corral on a superconducting substrate, built atom by atom by a scanning tunnelling microscope. Whenever an eigenmode of the corral is pitched close to the Fermi energy by adjusting the size of the corral, a pair of particle–hole symmetric states enters the gap of the superconductor. We identify these as spin-degenerate Andreev bound states theoretically predicted 50 years ago by Machida and Shibata, which had—so far—eluded detection by tunnel spectroscopy but were recently shown to be relevant for transmon qubit devices. We further find that the observed anticrossings of the in-gap states are a measure of proximity-induced pairing in the eigenmodes of the quantum corral. Our results have direct consequences on the interpretation of impurity-induced in-gap states in superconductors, corroborate concepts to induce superconductivity into surface states and further pave the way towards superconducting artificial lattices.

Nature (2023)

L. Schneider, Ph. Beck, L. Rozsa, Th. Posske, J. Wiebe and R. Wiesendanger

Spin chains proximitized by s-wave superconductors are predicted to enter a mini-gapped phase with topologically protected Majorana modes (MMs) localized at their ends. However, the presence of non-topological end states mimicking MM properties can hinder their unambiguous observation. Here, we report on a direct method to exclude the non-local nature of end states via scanning tunneling spectroscopy by introducing a locally perturbing defect on one of the chain’s ends. We apply this method to particular end states observed in antiferromagnetic spin chains within a large minigap, thereby proving their topologically trivial character. A minimal model shows that, while wide trivial minigaps hosting end states are easily achieved in antiferromagnetic spin chains, unrealistically large spin-orbit coupling is required to drive the system into a topologically gapped phase with MMs. The methodology of perturbing candidate topological edge modes in future experiments is a powerful tool to probe their stability against local disorder.

Nature Commun. 14 2742 (2023)

Ph. Beck, B. Nyári, L. Schneider, L. Rózsa, A. Lászlóffy, K. Palotás, L. Szunyogh, B. Ujfalussy, J. Wiebe, and R. Wiesendanger

One-dimensional systems comprising s-wave superconductivity with meticulously tuned magnetism realize topological superconductors hosting Majorana modes whose stability is determined by the gap size. However, for atomic spin chains on superconductors, the effect of the substrate’s spin-orbit coupling on the topological gap is largely unexplored. Here, we introduce an atomic layer of the heavy metal gold on a niobium surface combining strong spin-orbit coupling and a large superconducting gap with a high crystallographic quality, enabling the assembly of defect-free iron chains using a scanning tunneling microscope tip. Scanning tunneling spectroscopy experiments and density functional theory calculations reveal ungapped Yu–Shiba–Rusinov bands in the ferromagnetic chain despite the heavy substrate. By artificially imposing a spin spiral state, the calculations indicate minigap opening and zero-energy edge state formation. The methodology enables a material screening of heavy-metal layers on elemental superconductors for ideal systems hosting Majorana edge modes protected by large topological gaps.

Communications Physics volume 6, Article number: 83 (2023)

Daniel Crawford, Eric Mascot, Makoto Shimizu, Roland Wiesendanger, Dirk K. Morr, Harald O. Jeschke, and Stephan Rachel

Magnet-superconductor hybrid (MSH) systems are a key platform for custom-designed topological superconductors. Ideally, the ends of a one-dimensional MSH structure will host Majorana zero-modes (MZMs), the fundamental unit of topological quantum computing. However, some experiments with ferromagnetic (FM) chains show a more complicated picture. Due to tiny gap sizes and hence long coherence lengths, MZMs might hybridize and lose their topological protection. Recent experiments on a niobium surface have shown that both FM and antiferromagnetic (AFM) chains may be engineered, with the magnetic order depending on the crystallographic direction of the chain. While FM chains are well understood, AFM chains are less so. Here, we study two models inspired by the niobium surface: A minimal model to elucidate the general topological properties of AFM chains and an extended model to more closely simulate a real system by mimicking the proximity effect. We find that, in general, for AFM chains, the topological gap is larger than for FM ones, and thus, coherence lengths are shorter for AFM chains, yielding more pronounced localization of MZMs in these chains. While for some parameters AFM chains may be topologically trivial, we find in these cases that adding an adjacent chain can result in a nontrivial system, with a single MZM at each chain end.

Phys. Rev. B 107, 075410 (2023)

Ph. Beck, L. Schneider, R. Wiesendanger, and J. Wiebe

Magnetic adatoms coupled to an s-wave superconductor give rise to local bound states, so-called Yu-Shiba-Rusinov states. Focusing on the ultimate goal of tailoring chains of such adatoms into a topologically superconducting phase, we investigate basic building blocks—single Fe and Mn adatoms and Mn dimers on clean superconducting Ta(110)—using scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy. We perform a systematic study of the hybridizations and splittings in dimers, and their dependence on the crystallographic directions and interatomic spacings, in order to identify potentially interesting chain geometries for this sample type. Subsequently, we study the spin structure as well as the length dependent Shiba band structure in Mn chains of those geometries using spin-resolved scanning tunneling spectroscopy. All results are compared to the according properties of structurally identical dimers and chains on the previously studied Nb(110), which has almost identical surface structure and electronic properties, but an about three times smaller spin-orbit interaction.

Phys. Rev. B 107, 024426 (2023)

D. Crawford, E. Mascot, M. Shimizu, L. Schneider, Ph. Beck, J. Wiebe, R. Wiesendanger, H. O. Jeschke, D. K. Morr, and S. Rachel

Magnet-superconductor hybrid (MSH) systems represent promising platforms to host Majorana zero modes (MZMs), the elemental building blocks for fault-tolerant quantum computers. Theoretical description of such MSH structures is mostly based on simplified models, not accounting for the complexity of real materials. Here, based on density functional theory, we derive a superconducting 80-band model to study an MSH system consisting of a magnetic manganese chain on the s wave superconductor niobium. For a wide range of values of the superconducting order parameter, the system is a topological superconductor, with MZMs exhibiting non-universal spatial patterns and a drastic accumulation of spectral weight on both sides along the magnetic chain. These side feature states can be explained by an effective model which is guided by the ab initio results. Performing scanning tunneling spectroscopy experiments on the same system, we observe a spatial structure in the low-energy local density of states that is consistent with the theoretical findings. Our results open a first-principle approach to the discovery of topological superconductors.

npj Quantum Materials 7, 117 (2022)

Julia J. Goedecke, Lucas Schneider, Yingqiao Ma, Khai Ton That, Dongfei Wang, Jens Wiebe, and Roland Wiesendanger

Two-dimensional (2D) magnet–superconductor hybrid systems are intensively studied due to their potential for the realization of 2D topological superconductors with Majorana edge modes. It is theoretically predicted that this quantum state is ubiquitous in spin–orbit-coupled ferromagnetic or skyrmionic 2D spin–lattices in proximity to an s-wave superconductor. However, recent examples suggest that the requirements for topological superconductivity are complicated by the multiorbital nature of the magnetic components and disorder effects. Here, we investigate Fe monolayer islands grown on a surface of the s-wave superconductor with the largest gap of all elemental superconductors, Nb, with respect to magnetism and superconductivity using spin-resolved scanning tunneling spectroscopy. We find three types of islands which differ by their reconstruction inducing disorder, the magnetism and the subgap electronic states. All three types are ferromagnetic with different coercive fields, indicating diverse exchange and anisotropy energies. On all three islands, there is finite spectral weight throughout the substrate’s energy gap at the expense of the coherence peak intensity, indicating the formation of Shiba bands overlapping with the Fermi energy. A strong lateral variation of the spectral weight of the Shiba bands signifies substantial disorder on the order of the substrate’s pairing energy with a length scale of the period of the three different reconstructions. There are neither signs of topological gaps within these bands nor of any kind of edge modes. Our work illustrates that a reconstructed growth mode of magnetic layers on superconducting surfaces is detrimental for the formation of 2D topological superconductivity.

ACS Nano 16, 9, 14066–14074 (2022)

Lucas Schneider, Philip Beck, Jannis Neuhaus-Steinmetz, Levente Rózsa, Thore Posske, Jens Wiebe & Roland Wiesendanger

Isolated Majorana modes (MMs) are highly non-local quantum states with non-Abelian exchange statistics, which localize at the two ends of finite-size 1D topological superconductors of sufficient length. Experimental evidence for MMs is so far based on the detection of several key signatures: for example, a conductance peak pinned to the Fermi energy or an oscillatory peak splitting in short 1D systems when the MMs overlap. However, most of these key signatures were probed only on one of the ends of the 1D system, and firm evidence for an MM requires the simultaneous detection of all the key signatures on both ends. Here we construct short atomic spin chains on a superconductor—also known as Shiba chains—up to a chain length of 45 atoms using tip-assisted atom manipulation in scanning tunnelling microscopy experiments. We observe zero-energy conductance peaks localized at both ends of the chain that simultaneously split off from the Fermi energy in an oscillatory fashion after altering the chain length. By fitting the parameters of a low-energy model to the data, we find that the peaks are consistent with precursors of MMs that evolve into isolated MMs protected by an estimated topological gap of 50 μeV in chains of at least 35 nm length, corresponding to 70 atoms.

Nat. Nanotechnol. (2022)

Philip Beck, Lucas Schneider, Lydia Bachmann, Jens Wiebe, and Roland Wiesendanger

The ongoing quest for unambiguous signatures of topological superconductivity and Majorana modes in magnet-superconductor hybrid systems creates a high demand for suitable superconducting substrates. Materials that incorporate s-wave superconductivity with a wide energy gap, large spin-orbit coupling, and high surface quality, which enable the atom-by-atom construction of magnetic nanostructures using the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope, are particularly desired. Since single materials rarely fulfill all these requirements, we propose and demonstrate the growth of thin films of a high-Z metal, Ir, on a surface of the elemental superconductor with the largest energy gap, Nb. We find a strained Ir(110)/Nb(110)-oriented superlattice for thin films of one to two atomic layers, which transitions to a compressed Ir(111) surface for thick films of ten atomic layers. Using tunneling spectroscopy, we observe proximity-induced superconductivity in the latter Ir(111) film with a hard gap Δ that is 85.3% of that of bare Nb(110).

Phys. Rev. Materials 6, 024801 (2022)

A. Kamlapure, L. Cornils, R. Zitko, M. Valentyuk, R. Mozara, S. Pradhan, J. Fransson, A.I. Lichtenstein, J. Wiebe, and R. Wiesendanger

Mutually interacting magnetic atoms coupled to a superconductor have gained enormous interest due to their potential for the realization of topological superconductivity. Individual magnetic impurities produce states within the superconducting energy gap known as Yu–Shiba–Rusinov (YSR) states. Here, using the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope, we artificially craft spin arrays consisting of an Fe adatom interacting with an assembly of interstitial Fe atoms (IFA) on a superconducting oxygen-reconstructed Ta(100) surface and show that the magnetic interaction between the adatom and the IFA assembly can be tuned by adjusting the number of IFAs in the assembly. The YSR state experiences a characteristic crossover in its energetic position and particle–hole spectral weight asymmetry when the Kondo resonance shows spectral depletion around the Fermi energy. By the help of slave-boson mean-field theory (SBMFT) and numerical renormalization group (NRG) calculations we associate the crossover with the transition from decoupled Kondo singlets to an antiferromagnetic ground state of the Fe adatom spin and the IFA assembly effective spin.

Nano Lett. 21, 6748 (2021)

Lucas Schneider, Philip Beck, Thore Posske, Daniel Crawford, Eric Mascot, Stephan Rachel, Roland Wiesendanger & Jens Wiebe

A major challenge in developing topological superconductors for implementing topological quantum computing is their characterization and control. It has been proposed that a p-wave-gapped topological superconductor can be fabricated with single-atom precision by assembling chains of magnetic atoms on s-wave superconductors with spin–orbit coupling. Here we analyse Bogoliubov quasiparticle interference in Mn chains, constructed atom by atom on Nb(110), and reveal the formation of multi-orbital Shiba bands using momentum-resolved measurements. We find evidence that one band features a topologically non-trivial p-wave gap, as inferred from its shape and particle–hole asymmetric intensity. Our work is an important step towards a distinct experimental determination of topological phases in multi-orbital systems by bulk electron band structure properties only.

Nat. Phys. (2021)

Beck, P., Schneider, L., Rózsa, L. et al.

Magnetic atoms coupled to the Cooper pairs of a superconductor induce Yu-Shiba-Rusinov states (in short Shiba states). In the presence of sufficiently strong spin-orbit coupling, the bands formed by hybridization of the Shiba states in ensembles of such atoms can support low-dimensional topological superconductivity with Majorana bound states localized on the ensembles’ edges. Yet, the role of spin-orbit coupling for the hybridization of Shiba states in dimers of magnetic atoms, the building blocks for such systems, is largely unexplored. Here, we reveal the evolution of hybridized multi-orbital Shiba states from a single Mn adatom to artificially constructed ferromagnetically and antiferromagnetically coupled Mn dimers placed on a Nb(110) surface. Upon dimer formation, the atomic Shiba orbitals split for both types of magnetic alignment. Our theoretical calculations attribute the unexpected splitting in antiferromagnetic dimers to spin-orbit coupling and broken inversion symmetry at the surface. Our observations point out the relevance of previously unconsidered factors on the formation of Shiba bands and their topological classification.

Nat Commun 12, 2040 (2021)

Schneider, L., Beck, P., Wiebe, J. & Wiesendanger, R.

A scanning tunneling microscope (STM) with a magnetic tip that has a sufficiently strong spin polarization can be used to map the sample’s spin structure down to the atomic scale but usually lacks the possibility to absolutely determine the value of the sample’s spin polarization. Magnetic impurities in superconducting materials give rise to pairs of perfectly, i.e., 100%, spin-polarized subgap resonances. In this work, we functionalize the apex of a superconducting Nb STM tip with such impurity states by attaching Fe atoms to probe the spin polarization of atom-manipulated Mn nanomagnets on a Nb(110) surface. By comparison with spin-polarized STM measurements of the same nanomagnets using Cr bulk tips, we demonstrate an extraordinary spin sensitivity and the possibility to measure the sample’s spin-polarization values close to the Fermi level quantitatively with our new functionalized probes.

Science Advances 7, (2021)

P. Lindner, L. Bargsten, S. Kovarik, J. Friedlein, J. Harm, S. Krause, and R. Wiesendanger

The thermal stability of atomic-scale skyrmions is of high relevance for potential spintronics applications and validation of theoretical models. We investigated Pd/Fe nanoislands on an Ir(111) substrate as a function of temperature and magnetic field. Utilizing noncollinear magnetoresistance contrast in scanning tunneling microscopy, the thermomagnetic phase space is explored up to 3 T within a temperature range between 1 K to 100 K. Evidence is found for the spin spiral, field-polarized, and fluctuating disordered magnetic phases. Evidence for the presence of atomic-scale skyrmions at up to approximately 80 K is found, irrespective of considerable magnetization dynamics arising from thermal agitation.

Phys. Rev. B 101, 214445 (2020)

Schneider, L., Brinker, S., Steinbrecher, M. et al.

Chains of magnetic atoms with either strong spin-orbit coupling or spiral magnetic order which are proximity-coupled to superconducting substrates can host topologically non-trivial Majorana bound states. The experimental signature of these states consists of spectral weight at the Fermi energy which is spatially localized near the ends of the chain. However, topologically trivial Yu-Shiba-Rusinov in-gap states localized near the ends of the chain can lead to similar spectra. Here, we explore a protocol to disentangle these contributions by artificially augmenting a candidate Majorana spin chain with orbitally-compatible nonmagnetic atoms. Combining scanning tunneling spectroscopy with ab-initio and tight-binding calculations, we realize a sharp spatial transition between the proximity-coupled spiral magnetic order and the non-magnetic superconducting wire termination, with persistent zero-energy spectral weight localized at either end of the magnetic spiral. Our findings open a new path towards the control of the spatial position of in-gap end states, trivial or Majorana, via different chain terminations, and the realization of designer Majorana chain networks for demonstrating topological quantum computation.

Nat Commun 11, 4707 (2020)

J. Friedlein, J. Harm, P. Lindner, L. Bargsten, M. Bazarnik, S. Krause and R. Wiesendanger

A scanning tunneling microscope for spin-resolved studies of dynamic systems is presented. The cryogenic setup allows the scanning tunneling microscope to achieve a cutoff frequency beyond 26 GHz at the tunnel junction and to be operable at temperatures of 1.1 K–100 K in a magnetic field of up to 3 T. For this purpose, the microscope and its wiring as well as the associated cryostat system were specially designed and manufactured. For sample preparation, an ultrahigh vacuum system was developed, which is equipped with modular preparation platforms. Measurements showing the characteristics of the scanning tunneling microscope in the time and frequency domain are presented. As a proof of concept, experimental data of the Pd/Fe/Ir(111) sample system at 95 K in a magnetic field of 3 T are presented.

Rev. Sci. Instrum. 90, 123705 (2019)

Yann Kiefer, Max Hachmann, Andreas Hemmerich

Quantum gas systems provide a unique experimental platform to study the crossover between Bose–Einstein condensed molecular pairs and Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer superfluidity. The few studies in optical lattices have so far focused on the case when only the lowest Bloch band is populated, thus excluding orbital degrees of freedom. Here we demonstrate the preparation of ultracold Feshbach molecules of fermionic atoms in the second Bloch band of an optical square lattice. We cover a wide range of interaction strengths, including the regime of unitarity in the middle of the crossover. Binding energies and band relaxation dynamics are measured by means of a method resembling mass spectrometry. We find that the longest lifetimes arise for strongly interacting Feshbach molecules at the onset of unitarity. In the case of strong confinement in a deep lattice potential, we observe bound dimers also for negative values of the scattering length, extending previous findings for molecules in the lowest band.

Nat. Phys. (2023)

Pil Saugmann, José Vargas, Yann Kiefer, Max Hachman, Raphael Eichberger, Andreas Hemmerich, and Jonas Larson

We propose and experimentally explore a method for realizing frustrated lattice models using a Bose-Einstein condensate held in an optical square lattice. A small lattice distortion opens up an energy gap such that the lowest band splits into two. Along the edge of the first Brillouin zone for both bands, a nearly flat energy-momentum dispersion is realized. For the excited band, a highly degenerate energy minimum arises. By loading ultracold atoms into the excited band, a classically frustrated XY model is formed, describing rotors on a square lattice with competing nearest and next-nearest tunneling couplings. Our experimental optical lattice provides a regime where a fully coherent Bose-Einstein condensate is observed and a regime where frustration is expected. If we adiabatically tune from the condensate regime to the regime of frustration, the momentum spectra show a complete loss of coherence. Upon slowly tuning back to the condensate regime, coherence is largely restored. Good agreement with model calculations is obtained.

Phys. Rev. A 106, L041302 (2022)

M. Hachmann, Y. Kiefer, J. Riebesehl, R. Eichberger, and A. Hemmerich

Spin-polarized samples and spin mixtures of quantum degenerate fermionic atoms are prepared in selected excited Bloch bands of an optical checkerboard square lattice. For the spin-polarized case, extreme band lifetimes above 10 s are observed, reflecting the suppression of collisions by Pauli’s exclusion principle. For spin mixtures, lifetimes are reduced by an order of magnitude by two-body collisions between different spin components, but still remarkably large values of about 1 s are found. By analyzing momentum spectra, we can directly observe the orbital character of the optical lattice. The observations demonstrated here form the basis for exploring the physics of Fermi gases with two paired spin components in orbital optical lattices, including the regime of unitarity.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 033201 (2021)

Christof Weitenberg & Juliette Simonet

Floquet engineering is the concept of tailoring a system by a periodic drive, and it is increasingly employed in many areas of physics. Ultracold atoms in optical lattices offer a particularly large toolbox to design a variety of driving schemes. A strong motivation for developing these methods is the prospect to study the interplay between topology and interactions in a system where both ingredients are fully tunable. We review the recent successes of Floquet engineering in realizing new classes of Hamiltonians in quantum gases, such as Hamiltonians including artificial gauge fields, topological band structures and density-dependent tunnelling. The creation of periodically driven systems also gives rise to phenomena without static counterparts such as anomalous Floquet topological insulators. We discuss the challenges facing the field, particularly the control of heating mechanisms, which currently limit the preparation of many-body phases, as well as the potential future developments as these obstacles are overcome.

Nat. Phys. (2021)

M. Nuske, J. Vargas, M. Hachmann, R. Eichberger, L. Mathey, A. Hemmerich

The phenomenon of metastability shapes dynamical processes ranging from radioactive decay to chemical reactions. Here, we present a mechanism for metastability in which a quantum gas self-stabilizes against relaxation towards thermal equilibrium by establishing a transient ordered state. In this state, the direct relaxation channel is suppressed by destructive interference, which derives from the chiral order of the transient state. In particular, we consider the dynamical evolution of an ultracold bosonic gas in an optical lattice, that is quenched into a higher band of the lattice, which triggers the dynamical evolution. Following this quench, the self-stabilization phenomenon manifests itself in three stages of relaxation, subsequent to the preparation of the incoherent excited state. In the first stage, the gas develops coherence resulting in the ordered state, during the second stage the gas forms a long-lived state with inhibited relaxation and slow loss of coherence, followed by the third stage of fast relaxation to the thermal ground state. We demonstrate this mechanism experimentally and theoretically, and discuss its broader implications.

Phys. Rev. Research 2, 043210 (2020)

D.-S. Lühmann

In one-dimensional systems a twisted superfluid phase is found which is induced by a spontaneous breaking of the time-reversal symmetry. Using the density-matrix renormalization group allows us to show that the excitation energy gap closes exponentially causing a quasidegenerate ground state. The two degenerate ground states are connected by the time-reversal symmetry which manifests itself in an alternating complex phase of the long-range correlation function. The quantum phase transition to the twisted superfluid is driven by pair tunneling processes in an extended Bose-Hubbard model. The phase boundaries of several other phases are discussed including a supersolid, a pair superfluid, and a pair supersolid phase as well as a highly unconventional Mott insulator with a degenerate ground state and a staggered pair correlation function.

Phys. Rev. A 94, 011603(R) (2016)

M. Weinberg, C. Staarmann, C. Ölschläger, J. Simonet, K. Sengstock

Here, we present the application of a novel method for controlling the geometry of a state-dependent honeycomb lattice: The energy offset between the two sublattices of the honeycomb structure can be adjusted by rotating the atomic quantization axis. This enables us to continuously tune between a homogeneous graphene-like honeycomb lattice and a triangular lattice and to open an energy gap at the characteristic Dirac points. We probe the symmetry of the lattice with microwave spectroscopy techniques and investigate the behavior of atoms excited to the second energy band. We find a striking influence of the energy gap at the Dirac cones onto the lifetimes of atoms in the excited band.

2D Materials 3, 024005 (2016)

M. Weinberg, O. Jürgensen, C. Ölschläger, D.-S. Lühmann, K. Sengstock, J. Simonet

We study several effects which lead to symmetry-broken momentum distributions of quantum gases released from optical lattices. In particular, we demonstrate that interaction within the first milliseconds of the time-of-flight expansion can strongly alter the measurement of the initial atomic momentum distribution. For bosonic mixtures in state-dependent lattices, inter-species scattering processes lead to a symmetry breaking in momentum space. The underlying mechanism is identified to be diffraction of the matter wave from the total density lattice, which gives rise to a timedependent interaction potential. Our findings are of fundamental relevance for the interpretation of time-of-flight measurements and for the study of exotic quantum phases such as the twisted superfluid. Beyond that, the observed matter-wave diraction can also be used as an interferometric probe. In addition, we report on diffraction from the state-dependent standing light field, which leads to the same symmetry-broken momentum distributions, even for single component condensates.

Phys. Rev. A 93, 033625 (2016)

D.-S. Lühmann, C. Weitenberg, K. Sengstock

In the recent years, ultracold atoms in optical lattices have proven their great value as quantum simulators for studying strongly-correlated phases and complex phenomena in solid-state systems. Here we reveal their potential as quantum simulators for molecular physics and propose a technique to image the three-dimensional molecular orbitals with high resolution. The outstanding tunability of ultracold atoms in terms of potential and interaction offer fully-adjustable model systems for gaining deep insight into the electronic structure of molecules. We study the orbitals of an artificial benzene molecule and discuss the effect of tunable interactions in its conjugated pi electron system with special regard to localization and spin order. The dynamical timescale of ultracold atom simulators are on the order milliseconds which allow for the time-resolved monitoring of a broad range of dynamical processes. As an example, we compute the hole dynamics in the conjugated pi system of the artificial benzene molecule.

Phys. Rev. X 5, 031016 (2015)

We show that correlated pair tunneling drives a phase transition to a twisted superfluid with a complex order parameter. This unconventional superfluid phase spontaneously breaks the time-reversal symmetry and is characterized by a twisting of the complex phase angle between adjacent lattice sites. We discuss the entire phase diagram of the extended Bose--Hubbard model for a honeycomb optical lattice showing a multitude of quantum phases including twisted superfluids, pair superfluids, supersolids and twisted supersolids. Furthermore, we show that the nearest-neighbor interactions breaks the inversion symmetry of the lattice and gives rise to dimerized density-wave insulators, where particles are delocalized on dimers. For two components, we find twisted superfluid phases with strong correlations between the species already for surprisingly small pair-tunneling amplitudes. Interestingly, this ground state shows an infinite degeneracy ranging continuously from a supersolid to a twisted superfluid.

Scientific Reports 5, 12912 (2015)

M. Weinberg, C. Ölschläger, C. Sträter, S. Prelle, A. Eckardt, K. Sengstock, J. Simonet

We report on the observation of multiphoton absorption processes for quantum gases in shaken light crystals. Periodic inertial forcing, induced by a spatial motion of the lattice potential, drives multiphoton interband excitations of up to the 9th order. The occurrence of such excitation features is systematically investigated with respect to the potential depth and the driving amplitude. Ab initio calculations of resonance positions as well as numerical evaluation of their strengths exhibit a good agreement with experimental data. In addition our findings set the stage for reaching novel phases of quantum matter by tailoring appropriate driving schemes.

Phys. Rev. A 92, 043621 (2015)

L. Cao, S. Krönke, J. Stockhofe, J. Simonet, K. Sengstock, D.-S. Lühmann and P. Schmelcher

We investigate a binary mixture of bosonic atoms loaded into a state-dependent honeycomb lattice. For this system, the emergence of a so-called twisted-superfluid ground state was experimentally observed in Soltan-Panahi et al. [Nat. Phys. 8, 71 (2012)]. Theoretically, the origin of this effect is not understood. We perform numerical simulations of an extended single-band Bose-Hubbard model adapted to the experimental parameters employing the multilayer multiconfiguration time-dependent Hartree method for Bosons. Our results confirm the overall applicability of mean-field theory in the relevant parameter range, within the extended single-band Bose-Hubbard model. Beyond this, we provide a detailed analysis of correlation effects correcting the mean-field result. These have the potential to induce asymmetries in single shot time-of-flight measurements, but we find no indication of the patterns characteristic of the twisted superfluid. We comment on the restrictions of our model and possible extensions.

Physical Review A 91, 043639 (2015)

We study bosonic atoms in optical honeycomb lattices with anisotropic tunneling and find dimerized Mott insulator (MI) phases with fractional filling. These incompressible insulating phases are characterized by an interaction-driven localization of particles in respect to the individual dimers and large local particle-number fluctuations within the dimers. We calculate the ground-state phase diagrams and the excitation spectra using an accurate cluster mean-field method. The cluster treatment enables us to probe the fundamental excitations of the dimerized MI where the excitation gap is dominated by the intra-dimer tunneling amplitude. This allows the distinction from normal Mott insulating phases gapped by the on-site interaction. In addition, we present analytical results for the phase diagram derived by a higher-order strong-coupling perturbative expansion approach. By computing finite lattices with large diameters the influence of a harmonic confinement is discussed in detail. It is shown that a large fraction of atoms forms the dimerized MI under experimental conditions. The necessary anisotropic tunneling can be realized either by periodic driving of the optical lattice or by engineering directly a dimerized lattice potential. The dimers can be mapped to their antisymmetric states creating a lattice with coupled p-orbitals.

New J. Phys. 16, 093023 (2014)

J. Struck, J. Simonet, K. Sengstock

We propose a novel experimental scheme for the emulation of spin-orbit coupling for ultracold, neutral atoms trapped in a one-dimensional lattice. This scheme does not involve near-resonant laser fields, avoiding the heating processes connected to the spontaneous emission of photons.

A time dependent magnetic field gradient periodically drives the atoms, which can lead to complex valued tunnel matrix elements, equivalent to a gauge dependent shift of the dispersion relation for a 1D lattice. For opposite spin states, the dispersion relations are shifted in opposite direction due to the inverted drive for both states. An additional radio-frequency coupling between the spin states leads to a mixing of the spin dispersion relations and a spin-orbit gap in the band structure.

Phys. Rev. A 90, 031601(R) (2014)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1407.1953

D.-S. Lühmann, O. Jürgensen, M. Weinberg, J. Simonet, P. Soltan-Panahi, K. Sengstock

We study the ground-state properties of ultracold bosonic atoms in a state-dependent graphene-like honeycomb optical lattice, where the degeneracy between the two triangular sublattices A and B can be lifted. We discuss the various geometries accessible with this lattice setup and present a novel scheme to control the energy offset with external magnetic fields. The competition of the on-site interaction with the offset energy leads to Mott phases characterized by population imbalances between the sublattices. For the definition of an optimal Hubbard model, we demonstrate a scheme that allows for the efficient computation of Wannier functions. Using a cluster mean-field method, we compute the phase diagrams and provide a universal representation for arbitrary energy offsets. We find good agreement with the experimental data for the superfluid to Mott insulator transition.

Phys. Rev. A 90, 013614 (2014)

J. Simonet, J. Struck, M. Weinberg, C. Ölschläger, P. Hauke, A. Eckardt, M. Lewenstein, K. Sengstock, P. Windpassinger

We present a universal method to create a tunable, artificial vector gauge potential for neutral particles trapped in an optical lattice. A suitable periodic shaking of the lattice allows to engineer a Peierls phase for the hopping parameters. This scheme thus allows one to address the atomic internal degrees of freedom independently. We experimentally demonstrate the realisation of such artificial potentials in a 1D lattice, which generate ground state superfluids at arbitrary non-zero quasimomentum [4].

This scheme offers fascinating possibilities to emulate synthetic magnetic fields in 2D lattices. In a triangular lattice, continuously tunable staggered fluxes are realised. Spontaneous symmetry breaking has recently been observed for a π-flux [23]. With the presented scheme, we are now able to study the influence of a small symmetry breaking perturbation.

EPJ Web of Conferences Volume 57, 01004 (2013)

J. Struck, M. Weinberg, C. Ölschläger, P. Windpassinger, J. Simonet, K. Sengstock, R. Höppner, P. Hauke, A. Eckardt, M. Lewenstein, L. Mathey

D.-S. Lühmann

A versatile and numerically inexpensive method is presented allowing the accurate calculation of phase diagrams for bosonic lattice models. By treating clusters within the Gutzwiller theory, a surprisingly good description of quantum fluctuations beyond the mean-field theory is achieved approaching quantum Monte Carlo predictions for large clusters. Applying this powerful method to the Bose-Hubbard model, we demonstrate that it yields precise results for the superfluid to Mott-insulator transition in square, honeycomb, and cubic lattices. Due to the exact treatment within a cluster, the method can be effortlessly adapted to more complicated Hamiltonians in the fast progressing field of optical lattice experiments. This includes state- and site-dependent superlattices, large confined atomic systems, and disordered potentials, as well as various types of extended Hubbard models. Furthermore, the approach allows an excellent treatment of systems with arbitrary filling factors. We discuss the perspectives that allow for the computation of large, spatially varying lattices, low-lying excitations, and time evolution.

Phys. Rev. A 87, 043619 (2013)

P. Hauke, O. Tielemann, A. Celi, C. Ölschläger, J. Simonet, J. Struck, M. Weinberg, P. Windpassinger, K. Sengstock, M. Lewenstein, A. Eckardt

Time-periodic driving offers a low-demanding method to generate artificial gauge fields in optical lattices. We demonstrate that it is a powerful and versatile tool for engineering two-dimensional lattice systems: We show how to tune frustration and how to create and control band touching points like Dirac cones in the shaken kagom\'e lattice. We propose the realization of a topological or a quantum spin Hall insulator in a shaken spin-dependent hexagonal lattice. We describe how strong artificial magnetic fields can be achieved for example in a square lattice by employing superlattice modulation. Finally, exemplified on a shaken spin-dependent square lattice, we develop a method to create strong non-Abelian gauge fields.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 109, 145301 (2012)
http://www.arxiv.org/abs/1205.1398

J. Struck, C. Ölschläger, M. Weinberg, P. Hauke, J. Simonet, A. Eckardt, M. Lewenstein, K. Sengstock, P. Windpassinger

We present a universal method to create a tunable, artificial vector gauge potential for neutral particles trapped in an optical lattice. The necessary Peierls phase of the hopping parameters between neighboring lattice sites is generated by applying a suitable periodic inertial force such that the method does not rely on any internal structure of the particles. We experimentally demonstrate the realization of such artificial potentials, which generate ground state superfluids at arbitrary non-zero quasi-momentum. We furthermore investigate possible implementations of this scheme to create tuneable magnetic fluxes, going towards model systems for strong-field physics.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 225304 (2012)
http://www.arxiv.org/abs/1203.0049v1

P. Soltan-Panahi, D.-S. Lühmann, J. Struck, P. Windpassinger, K. Sengstock

Orbital physics plays a significant role for a vast number of important phenomena in complex condensed matter systems such as high-Tc superconductivity and unconventional magnetism. In contrast, phenomena in superfluids - especially in ultracold quantum gases - are commonly well described by the lowest orbital and a real order parameter. Here, we report on the observation of a novel multi-orbital superfluid phase with a complex order parameter in binary spin mixtures. In this unconventional superfluid, the local phase angle of the complex order parameter is continuously twisted between neighboring lattice sites. The nature of this twisted superfluid quantum phase is an interaction-induced admixture of the p-orbital favored by the graphene-like band structure of the hexagonal optical lattice used in the experiment. We observe a second-order quantum phase transition between the normal superfluid (NSF) and the twisted superfluid phase (TSF) which is accompanied by a symmetry breaking in momentum space. The experimental results are consistent with calculated phase diagrams and reveal fundamentally new aspects of orbital superfluidity in quantum gas mixtures. Our studies might bridge the gap between conventional superfluidity and complex phenomena of orbital physics.

Nature Physics 8, 71–75 (2012)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1104.3456v1

G.-Q. Luo, A. Hemmerich, Z.-F. Xu

We investigate the interaction-driven instability of a quadratic band crossing arising for ultracold bosonic atoms loaded into a two-dimensional optical lattice. We consider the case when the degenerate point becomes a local minimum of both crossing energy bands such that it can support a stable Bose–Einstein condensate. A repulsive contact interaction among the condensed bosons induces a spontaneously time-reversal-symmetry broken superfluid phase and a topological gap is opened in the excitation spectrum. We propose two concrete realizations of the desired quadratic band crossing in lattices with either fourfold or sixfold rotational symmetries via suitable tuning of the unit cell leading to reduced Brillouin zones and correspondingly folded bands. In either case, topologically protected edge excitations are found for a finite system.

Phys. Rev. A 98, 053617 (2018)

Y. Li, J. Yuan, A. Hemmerich, X. Li

Intrinsic spin angular-momentum coupling of an electron has a relativistic quantum origin with the coupling arising from charged orbits, which does not carry over to charge-neutral atoms. Here, we propose a mechanism of spontaneous generation of spin angular-momentum coupling with spinor atomic bosons loaded into p-orbital bands of a two-dimensional optical lattice. This spin angular-momentum coupling originates from many-body correlations and spontaneous symmetry breaking in a superfluid, with the key ingredients attributed to spin-channel quantum fluctuations and an approximate rotation symmetry. The resultant spin angular-momentum intertwined superfluid has Dirac excitations. In the presence of a chemical potential difference for adjacent sites, it provides a bosonic analogue of a symmetry-protected-topological insulator. Through a dynamical mean-field calculation, this novel superfluid is found to be a generic low-temperature phase, and it gives way to Mott localization only at strong interactions and even-integer fillings. We show the temperature to reach this order is accessible with present experiments.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 093401 (2018)

Zhi-Fang Xu, Andreas Hemmerich, W. Vincent Liu

We propose a physical scheme for the realization of two-dimensional topological odd-parity superfluidity in a spin-independent bond-centered square optical lattice based upon interband fermion pairing. The D₄ point-group symmetry of the lattice protects a quadratic band crossing, which allows one to prepare a Fermi surface of spin-up fermions with odd parity close to the degeneracy point. In the presence of spin-down fermions with even parity populating a different energetically well-separated band, odd-parity pairing is favored. Strikingly, as a necessary prerequisite for pairing, both Fermi surfaces can be tuned to match well. As a result, topological superfluid phases emerge in the presence of merely s-wave interaction. Due to the Z₂ symmetry of these odd-parity superfluids, we infer their topological features simply from the symmetry and the Fermi-surface topology as confirmed numerically.

Physical Review A 96, 053607 (2017)

M. Di Liberto, A. Hemmerich, and C. Morais Smith

Topological states of matter are peculiar quantum phases showing different edge and bulk transport properties connected by the bulk-boundary correspondence. While non-interacting fermionic topological insulators are well established by now and have been classified according to a ten-fold scheme, the possible realisation of topological states for bosons has not been much explored yet. Furthermore, the role of interactions is far from being understood. Here, we show that a topological state of matter exclusively driven by interactions may occur in the p-band of a Lieb optical lattice filled with ultracold bosons. The single-particle spectrum of the system displays a remarkable parabolic band-touching point, with both bands exhibiting non-negative curvature. Although the system is neither topological at the single-particle level, nor for the interacting ground state, on-site interactions induce an anomalous Hall effect for the excitations, carrying a non-zero Chern number. Our work introduces an experimentally realistic strategy for the formation of interaction-driven topological states of bosons.

Physical Review Letters 117, 163001 (2016)
https://arxiv.org/abs/1604.06055

Zhi-Fang Xu, Li You, Andreas Hemmerich, and W. Vincent Liu

We study the topological properties of elementary excitations in a staggered p_x±ip_y Bose-Einstein condensate realized in recent orbital optical lattice experiments. The condensate wave function may be viewed as a configuration space variant of the famous p_x+ip_y momentum space order parameter of strontium ruthenate superconductors. We show that its elementary excitation spectrum possesses Dirac bosons with π Berry flux. Remarkably, if we induce a population imbalance between the p_x+ip_y and p_x−ip_y condensate components, a gap opens up in the excitation spectrum resulting in a nonzero Chern invariant and topologically protected edge excitation modes. We give a detailed description of how our proposal can be implemented with standard experimental technology.

Phys. Rev.Lett. 117, 085301 (2016)

T. Kock, C. Hippler, A. Ewerbeck, and A. Hemmerich

This article provides a synopsis of our recent experimental work exploring Bose-Einstein condensation in metastable higher Bloch bands of optical lattices. Bipartite lattice geometries have allowed us to implement appropriate band structures, which meet three basic requirements: the existence of metastable excited states sufficiently protected from collisional band relaxation, a mechanism to excite the atoms initially prepared in the lowest band with moderate entropy increase, and the possibility of cross-dimensional tunneling dynamics, necessary to establish coherence along all lattice axes. A variety of bands can be selectively populated and a subsequent thermalisation process leads to the formation of a condensate in the lowest energy state of the chosen band. As examples the 2nd, 4th and 7th bands in a bipartite square lattice are discussed. The geometry of the 2nd and 7th band can be tuned such that two inequivalent energetically degenerate energy minima arise at the X±-points at the edge of the 1st Brillouin zone. In this case even a small interaction energy is sufficient to lock the phase between the two condensation points such that a complex-valued chiral superfluid order parameter can emerge, which breaks time reversal symmetry. In the 4th band a condensate can be formed at the Gamma-point in the center of the 1st Brillouin zone, which can be used to explore topologically protected band touching points. The new techniques to access orbital degrees of freedom in higher bands greatly extend the class of many-body scenarios that can be explored with bosons in optical lattices.

J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 49, 042001 (2016)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1601.00500

T. Kock, M. Ölschläger, A. Ewerbeck, W.-M. Huang, L. Mathey, A. Hemmerich

The breaking of time reversal symmetry via the spontaneous formation of chiral order is ubiquitous in nature. Here, we present an unambiguous demonstration of this phenomenon for atoms Bose-Einstein condensed in the second Bloch band of an optical lattice. As a key tool we use a matter wave interference technique, which lets us directly observe the phase properties of the superfluid order parameter and allows us to reconstruct the spatial geometry of certain low energy excitations, associated with the formation of domains of different chirality. Our work marks a new era of optical lattices where orbital degrees of freedom play an essential role for the formation of exotic quantum matter, similarly as in electronic systems.

Physical Review Letters 114, 115301 (2015)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1411.3483

M. Di Liberto, T. Comparin , T. Kock, M. Ölschäger, A. Hemmerich, C. Morais Smith

The control of transport properties is a key tool at the basis of many technologically relevant effects in condensed matter. The clean and precisely controlled environment of ultracold atoms in optical lattices allows one to prepare simplified but instructive models, which can help to better understand the underlying physical mechanisms. We show that by tuning a structural deformation of the unit cell in a bipartite optical lattice, one can induce a phase transition from a superfluid into various Mott insulating phases forming a shell structure in the superimposed harmonic trap. The Mott shells are identified via characteristic features in the visibility of Bragg maxima in momentum spectra. The experimental findings are explained by Gutzwiller mean-field and quantum Monte Carlo calculations. Our system bears similarities with the loss of coherence in cuprate superconductors, known to be associated with the doping induced buckling of the oxygen octahedra surrounding the copper sites.

Nature Communications 5, 5735 (2014)

X. Li, A. Paramekanti, A. Hemmerich, W. Vincent Liu

Recent experiments on p-orbital atomic bosons have suggested the emergence of a spectacular ultracold superfluid with staggered orbital currents in optical lattices. This raises fundamental questions concerning the effects of thermal fluctuations as well as possible ways of directly observing such chiral order. Here we show via Monte Carlo simulations that thermal fluctuations destroy this superfluid in an unexpected two-step process, unveiling an intermediate normal phase with spontaneously broken time-reversal symmetry, dubbed a ‘chiral Bose liquid’. For integer fillings (n≥2) in the chiral Mott regime, thermal fluctuations are captured by an effective orbital Ising model, and Onsager’s powerful exact solution is adopted to determine the transition from this intermediate liquid to the para- orbital normal phase at high temperature. A lattice quench is designed to convert the staggered angular momentum, previously thought by experts difficult to directly probe, into coherent orbital oscillations, providing a time-resolved dynamical signature of chiral order.

Nature Communications 5, 3205 (2014)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1309.0523

M. Ölschläger, T. Kock, G. Wirth, A. Ewerbeck, C. Morais Smith, A. Hemmerich

The study of superconductivity with unconventional order is complicated in condensed matter systems by their immense complexity. Optical lattices with their exceptional precision and control allow one to emulate superfluidity avoiding many of the complications of condensed matter. A promising approach to realize unconventional superfluid order is to employ orbital degrees of freedom in higher Bloch bands. In recent work, indications were found that bosons condensed in the second band of an optical chequerboard lattice might exhibit px ± i py order. Here we present experiments, which provide strong evidence for the emergence of px ± i py order driven by the interaction in the local p-orbitals. We compare our observations with a multi-band Hubbard model and find excellent quantitative agreement.

New Journal of Physics 15, 083041 (2013)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1305.1177

M. Ölschläger, G. Wirth, T. Kock, A. Hemmerich

We report on the condensation of bosons in the 4th band of an optical chequerboard lattice providing a topologically induced avoided band crossing involving the second, third, and fourth bands. When the condensate is slowly tuned through the avoided crossing, accelerated band relaxation arises and the zero momentum approximately C4-invariant condensate wave function acquires finite momentum order and reduced C2 symmetry. For faster tuning Landau-Zener oscillations between different superfluid orders arise, which are used to characterize the avoided crossing.

Physical Review Letters, 108, 075302 (2012)
http://lanl.arxiv.org/abs/1110.3716

K. Sun, W. V. Liu, A. Hemmerich, S. Das Sarma

Optical lattices have an important role in advancing our understanding of correlated quantum matter. The recent implementation of orbital degrees of freedom in chequerboard and hexagonal3 optical lattices opens up a new avenue towards discovering novel quantum states of matter that have no prior analogues in solid-state electronic materials. Here, we predict that an exotic topological semimetal emerges as a parity-protected gapless state in the orbital bands of a two-dimensional fermionic optical lattice. This new quantum state is characterized by a parabolic band-degeneracy point with Berry flux 2 Pi, in sharp contrast to the Pi-flux of Dirac points as in graphene.We showthat the appearance of this topological liquid is universal for all latticeswith D4 point-group symmetry, as long as orbitals with opposite parities hybridize strongly with each other and the band degeneracy is protected by odd parity. Turning on inter-particle repulsive interactions, the system undergoes a phase transition to a topological insulator whose experimental signature includes chiral gapless domain-wall modes, reminiscent of quantumHall edge states.

Nature Physics 8, 67 (2012)

Benjamin Abeln, Koen Sponselee, Marcel Diem, Nejira Pintul, Klaus Sengstock, Christoph Becker

We characterize inter- and intraisotope interorbital interactions between atoms in the 1S0 ground state and the 3P0 metastable state in interacting Fermi-Fermi mixtures of 171Yb and 173Yb. We perform high-precision clock spectroscopy to measure interaction-induced energy shifts in a deep 3D optical lattice and determine the corresponding scattering lengths. We find the elastic interaction of the interisotope mixtures 173Yb_e-171Yb_g and 173Yb_g-171Yb_e to be weakly attractive and very similar, while the corresponding two-body loss coefficients differ by more than two orders of magnitude. By comparing different spin mixtures we experimentally demonstrate the SU(2)xSU(6) symmetry of all elastic and inelastic interactions. Furthermore, we measure the spin-exchange interaction in 171Yb and confirm its previously observed antiferromagnetic nature.

Phys. Rev. A 103, 033315 (2021)

B. S. Rem, N. Käming, M. Tarnowski, L. Asteria, N. Fläschner, C. Becker, K. Sengstock, C. Weitenberg

Machine-learning techniques such as artificial neural networks are currently revolutionizing many technological areas and have also proven successful in quantum physics applications1,2,3,4. Here, we employ an artificial neural network and deep-learning techniques to identify quantum phase transitions from single-shot experimental momentum-space density images of ultracold quantum gases and obtain results that were not feasible with conventional methods. We map out the complete two-dimensional topological phase diagram of the Haldane model5,6,7 and provide an improved characterization of the superfluid-to-Mott-insulator transition in an inhomogeneous Bose–Hubbard system8,9,10. Our work points the way to unravel complex phase diagrams of general experimental systems, where the Hamiltonian and the order parameters might not be known.

Nature Physics online (2019)

K. Sponselee, L. Freystatzky, B. Abeln, M. Diem, B. Hundt, A. Kochanke, T. Ponath, B. Santra, L. Mathey, K. Sengstock and C. Becker

Abstract. We employ metastable ultracold 173-Yb atoms to study dynamics in the 1D dissipative Fermi-Hubbard model experimentally and theoretically, and observe a complete inhibition of two-body losses after initial fast transient dynamics. We attribute the suppression of particle loss to the dynamical generation of a highly entangled Dicke state. For several lattice depths and for two- and six-spin component mixtures we find very similar dynamics, showing that the creation of strongly correlated states is a robust and universal phenomenon. This offers interesting opportunities for precision measurements.

arXiv:1805.11853 (2018)
https://arxiv.org/abs/1805.11853

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/2058-9565/aadccd/meta

Matthias Tarnowski, Marlon Nuske, Nick Fläschner, Benno Rem, Dominik Vogel, Lukas Freystatzky, Klaus Sengstock, Ludwig Mathey, and Christof Weitenberg

Topological defects in Bloch bands, such as Dirac points in graphene, and their resulting Berry phases play an important role for the electronic dynamics in solid state crystals. Such defects can arise in systems with a two-atomic basis due to the momentum-dependent coupling of the two sublattice states, which gives rise to a pseudospin texture. The topological defects appear as vortices in the azimuthal phase of this pseudospin texture. Here, we demonstrate a complete measurement of the azimuthal phase in a hexagonal optical lattice employing a versatile method based on time-of-flight imaging after off-resonant lattice modulation. Furthermore, we map out the merging transition of the two Dirac points induced by beam imbalance. Our work paves the way to accessing geometric properties in optical lattices also with spin-orbit coupling and interactions.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 240403 (2017)

S. Usenko, A. Przystawik, L.L. Lazzarino, M.A. Jakob, F. Jacobs, C. Becker, C. Haunhorst, D. Kip, and T. Laarmann

In this work we present a reflective split-and-delay unit (SDU) developed for interferometric time-resolved experiments utilizing an (extreme ultraviolet) XUV pump–XUV probe scheme with focused free-electron laser beams. The developed SDU overcomes limitations for phase-resolved measurements inherent to conventional two-element split mirrors by a special design using two reflective lamellar gratings. The gratings produce a high-contrast interference signal controlled by the grating displacement in every diffraction order. The orders are separated in the focal plane of the focusing optics, which enables one to avoid phase averaging by spatially selective detection of a single interference state of the two light fields. Interferometry requires a precise relative phase control of the light fields, which presents a challenge at short wavelengths. In our setup the phase delay is determined by an in-vacuum white light interferometer (WLI) that monitors the surface profile of the SDU in real time and thus measures the delay for each laser shot. The precision of the WLI is 1 nm as determined by optical laser interferometry. In the presented experimental geometry it corresponds to a time delay accuracy of 3 as, which enables phase-resolved XUV pump–XUV probe experiments at free-electron laser (FEL) repetition rates up to 60 Hz.

Appl. Sci. 7, 544 (2017)

U. Ebling, J. S. Krauser, N. Fläschner, K. Sengstock, C. Becker, M. Lewenstein, A. Eckardt

A fundamental question in many-body physics is how closed quantum systems reach equilibrium. We address this question experimentally and theoretically in an ultracold high-spin Fermi gas where we find a complex interplay between internal and motional degrees of freedom. The fermions are initially prepared far from equilibrium with only a few spin states occupied. The subsequent dynamics leading to redistribution among all spin states is observed experimentally and simulated theoretically using a kinetic Boltzmann equation with full spin coherence. The latter is derived microscopically and provides good agreement with experimental data without any free parameters. We identify several collisional processes, which occur on different time scales. By varying density and magnetic field, we control the relaxation dynamics and are able to continuously tune the character of a subset of spin states from an open to a closed system.

Phys. Rev. X 4, 021011 (2014)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1312.6704

M. Lahrz, M. Lemeshko, K. Sengstock, C. Becker, L. Mathey

Phys. Rev. A 89, 043616 (2014)

S. Dörscher, A. Thobe, B. Hundt, A. Kochanke, R. Le Targat, P. Windpassinger, C. Becker, K. Sengstock

The following article has been accepted by Review of Scientific Instruments. After it is published, it will be found at http://rsi.aip.org

We report on the first experimental setup based on a 2D-/3D-MOT scheme to create both Bose-Einstein condensates and degenerate Fermi gases of several ytterbium isotopes. Our setup does not require a Zeeman slower and offers the flexibility to simultaneously produce ultracold samples of other atomic species. Furthermore, the extraordinary optical access favors future experiments in optical lattices. A 2D-MOT on the strong 1S0-1P1 transition captures ytterbium directly from a dispenser of atoms and loads a 3D-MOT on the narrow 1S0-3P1 intercombination transition. Subsequently, atoms are transferred to a crossed optical dipole trap and cooled evaporatively to quantum degeneracy.

Review of Scientific Instruments 84, 043109

http://arxiv.org/abs/1303.1105

J. Heinze, J. S. Krauser, N. Fläschner, B. Hundt, S. Götze, A. Itin, L. Mathey, K. Sengstock, C. Becker

We report on the first experimental observation of a persistent alternating photocurrent in an ultracold gas of fermionic atoms in an optical lattice. The dynamics is induced and sustained by an external harmonic confinement. We find a counterintuitively momentum-dependent oscillation frequency for excited particles and a fast decay of holes which we attribute to spatial trapping. Lifetime measurements reveal a significant enhancement of particle-hole recombination with increasing interactions.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 085302 (2013)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1208.4020

Lennart Sobirey, Hauke Biss, Niclas Luick, Markus Bohlen, Henning Moritz, and Thomas Lompe

Understanding the origins of unconventional superconductivity has been a major focus of condensed matter physics for many decades. While many questions remain unanswered, experiments have found the highest critical temperatures in layered two-dimensional materials. However, to what extent the remarkable stability of these strongly correlated 2D superfluids is affected by their reduced dimensionality is still an open question. Here, we use dilute gases of ultracold fermionic atoms as a model system to directly observe the influence of dimensionality on the stability of strongly interacting fermionic superfluids. We find that the superfluid gap follows the same universal function of the interaction strength regardless of dimensionality, which suggests that there is no inherent difference in the stability of two- and three-dimensional fermionic superfluids. Finally, we compare our data to results from solid state systems and find a similar relation between the interaction strength and the gap for a wide range of two- and three-dimensional superconductors.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 129, 083601 (2022)

Hauke Biss, Lennart Sobirey, Niclas Luick, Markus Bohlen, Jami J. Kinnunen, Georg M. Bruun, Thomas Lompe, and Henning Moritz

Ultracold atomic gases are a powerful tool to experimentally study strongly correlated quantum many-body systems. In particular, ultracold Fermi gases with tunable interactions have allowed to realize the famous BEC-BCS crossover from a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) of molecules to a Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) superfluid of weakly bound Cooper pairs. However, large parts of the excitation spectrum of fermionic superfluids in the BEC-BCS crossover are still unexplored. In this work, we use Bragg spectroscopy to measure the full momentum-resolved low-energy excitation spectrum of strongly interacting ultracold Fermi gases. This enables us to directly observe the smooth transformation from a bosonic to a fermionic superfluid that takes place in the BEC-BCS crossover. We also use our spectra to determine the evolution of the superfluid gap and find excellent agreement with previous experiments and self-consistent T-matrix calculations both in the BEC and crossover regime. However, toward the BCS regime a calculation that includes the effects of particle-hole correlations shows better agreement with our data.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 128, 100401 (2022)

Lennart Sobirey, Niclas Luick, Markus Bohlen, Hauke Biss, Henning Moritz and Thomas Lompe

Understanding how strongly correlated two-dimensional (2D) systems can give rise to unconventional superconductivity with high critical temperatures is one of the major unsolved problems in condensed matter physics. Ultracold 2D Fermi gases have emerged as clean and controllable model systems to study the interplay of strong correlations and reduced dimensionality, but direct evidence of superfluidity in these systems has been missing. We demonstrate superfluidity in an ultracold 2D Fermi gas by moving a periodic potential through the system and observing no dissipation below a critical velocity vc. We measure vc as a function of interaction strength and find a maximum in the crossover regime between bosonic and fermionic superfluidity. Our measurements enable systematic studies of the influence of reduced dimensionality on fermionic superfluidity.

Science, Vol. 372, Issue 6544, pp. 844-846 (2021)

Martin Schlederer, Alexandra Mozdzen, Thomas Lompe, and Henning Moritz

Recording the fluorescence of a magneto-optical trap (MOT) is a standard tool for measuring atom numbers in experiments with ultracold atoms. When trapping few atoms in a small MOT, the emitted fluorescence increases with the atom number in discrete steps, which allows one to measure the atom number with single-particle resolution. Achieving such single-particle resolution requires stringent minimization of stray light from the MOT beams, which is very difficult to achieve in experimental setups that require in-vacuum components close to the atoms. Here, we present a modified scheme that addresses this issue: Instead of collecting the fluorescence on the MOT (D2) transition, we scatter light on an additional probing (D1) transition and collect this fluorescence with a high-resolution microscope while filtering out the intense MOT light. Using this scheme, we are able to reliably distinguish up to 17 40K atoms with classification fidelities of ∼98% for up to 5 atom numbers and fidelities of more than 85% for up to 17 atoms.

Phys. Rev. A 103, 033308 (2021)

Niclas Luick, Lennart Sobirey, Markus Bohlen, Vijay Pal, Ludwig Mathey, Thomas Lompe, Henning Moritz

The role of reduced dimensionality in high-temperature superconductors is still under debate. Recently, ultracold atoms have emerged as an ideal model system to study such strongly correlated two-dimensional (2D) systems. Here, we report on the realization of a Josephson junction in an ultracold 2D Fermi gas. We measure the frequency of Josephson oscillations as a function of the phase difference across the junction and find excellent agreement with the sinusoidal current phase relation of an ideal Josephson junction. Furthermore, we determine the critical current of our junction in the crossover from tightly bound molecules to weakly bound Cooper pairs. Our measurements clearly demonstrate phase coherence and provide strong evidence for superfluidity in a strongly interacting 2D Fermi gas.

Science Vol. 369, Issue 6499, pp. 89-91 (2020)

Markus Bohlen, Lennart Sobirey, Niclas Luick, Hauke Biss, Tilman Enss, Thomas Lompe, and Henning Moritz

Strongly interacting two-dimensional Fermi systems are one of the great remaining challenges in many-body physics due to the interplay of strong local correlations and enhanced long-range fluctuations. Here, we probe the thermodynamic and transport properties of a 2D Fermi gas across the BEC-BCS crossover by studying the propagation and damping of sound modes. We excite particle currents by imprinting a phase step onto homogeneous Fermi gases trapped in a box potential and extract the speed of sound from the frequency of the resulting density oscillations. We measure the speed of sound across the BEC-BCS crossover and compare the resulting dynamic measurement of the equation of state both to a static measurement based on recording density profiles and to quantum Monte Carlo calculations and find reasonable agreement between all three. We also measure the damping of the sound mode, which is determined by the shear and bulk viscosities as well as the thermal conductivity of the gas. We find that the damping is minimal in the strongly interacting regime and the diffusivity approaches the universal quantum bound ℏ/m of a perfect fluid.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 240403 (2020)

Keno Riechers, Klaus Hueck, Niclas Luick, Thomas Lompe, Henning Moritz

Investigating Friedel oscillations in ultracold gases would complement the studies performed on solid state samples with scanning-tunneling microscopes. In atomic quantum gases interactions and external potentials can be tuned freely and the inherently slower dynamics allow to access non-equilibrium dynamics following a potential or interaction quench. Here, we examine how Friedel oscillations can be observed in current ultracold gas experiments under realistic conditions. To this aim we numerically calculate the amplitude of the Friedel oscillations which a potential barrier provokes in a 1D Fermi gas and compare it to the expected atomic and photonic shot noise in a density measurement. We find that to detect Friedel oscillations the signal from several thousand one-dimensional systems has to be averaged. However, as up to 100 parallel one-dimensional systems can be prepared in a single run with present experiments, averaging over about 100 images is sufficient.

Eur. Phys. J. D 71, 232 (2017)
http://lanl.arxiv.org/abs/1704.06626

Klaus Hueck, Niclas Luick, Lennart Sobirey, Jonas Siegl, Thomas Lompe, Henning Moritz

We report on the experimental realization of homogeneous two-dimensional (2D) Fermi gases trapped in a box potential. In contrast to harmonically trapped gases, these homogeneous 2D systems are ideally suited to probe local as well as non-local properties of strongly interacting many-body systems. As a first measurement, we use a local probe to extract the equation of state (EOS) of a non-interacting Fermi gas. We then perform matter wave focusing to extract its momentum distribution and directly observe Pauli blocking in a near unity occupation of momentum states. Finally, we measure the momentum distribution of strongly interacting homogeneous 2D gases in the crossover between attractively interacting fermions and deeply-bound bosonic molecules.

PRL 120, 060402 (2018).
http://lanl.arxiv.org/abs/1704.06315

Klaus Hueck, Niclas Luick, Lennart Sobirey, Jonas Siegl, Thomas Lompe, Henning Moritz, Logan W. Clark, Cheng Chin

Absorption imaging of ultracold atoms is the foundation for quantitative extraction of information from experiments with ultracold atoms. Due to the limited exposure time available in these systems, the signal-to-noise ratio is largest for high intensity absorption imaging where the intensity of the imaging light is on the order of the saturation intensity. In this case, the absolute value of the intensity of the imaging light enters as an additional parameter making it more sensitive to systematic errors. Here, we present a novel and robust technique to determine the imaging intensity in units of the effective saturation intensity to better than 5%. We do this
by measuring the momentum transferred to the atoms by the imaging light while varying its intensity. We further utilize the method to quantify the purity of the polarization of the imaging light and to determine the correct
imaging detuning.

Opt. Express 25, 8670-8679 (2017)
https://arxiv.org/abs/1702.01943

Klaus Hueck, Anton Mazurenko, Niclas Luick, Thomas Lompe, Henning Moritz

igh resolution digital micro-mirror devices (DMD) make it possible to produce nearly arbitrary light fields with high accuracy, reproducibility and low optical aberrations. However, using these devices to trap and manipulate ultracold atomic systems for e.g. quantum simulation is often complicated by the presence of kHz-frequency switching noise. Here we demonstrate a simple hardware extension that solves this problem and makes it possible to produce truly static light fields. This modification leads to a 47 fold increase in the time that we can hold ultracold 6Li atoms in a dipole potential created with the DMD. Finally, we provide reliable and user friendly APIs written in Matlab and Python to control the DMD.

Rev. Sci. Instrum. 88, 016103 (2017)
https://arxiv.org/abs/1611.03397

M. Ojekhile, R. Höppner, H. Moritz, L. Mathey

Vijay Pal Singh, Wolf Weimer, Kai Morgener, Jonas Siegl, Klaus Hueck, Niclas Luick, Henning Moritz, Ludwig Mathey

We investigate the superfluid behavior of a Bose-Einstein condensate of 6Li molecules. In the experiment by Weimer et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 095301 (2015) a condensate is stirred by a weak, red-detuned laser beam along a circular path around the trap center. The rate of induced heating increases steeply above a velocity vc, which we define as the critical velocity. Below this velocity, the moving beam creates almost no heating. In this paper, we demonstrate a quantitative understanding of the critical velocity. Using both numerical and analytical methods, we identify the non-zero temperature, the circular motion of the stirrer, and the density profile of the cloud as key factors influencing the magnitude of vc. A direct comparison to the experimental data shows excellent agreement.

Phys. Rev. A 93, 023634 (2016)
http://lanl.arxiv.org/abs/1509.02168

W. Weimer, K. Morgener, V. P. Singh, J. Siegl, K. Hueck, N. Luick, L. Mathey, H. Moritz

We map out the critical velocity in the crossover from Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) to Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer superfluidity with ultracold 6Li gases. A small attractive potential is dragged along lines of constant column density. The rate of the induced heating increases steeply above a critical velocity vc. In the same samples, we measure the speed of sound vs by exciting density waves and compare the results to the measured values of vc. We perform numerical simulations in the BEC regime and find very good agreement, validating the approach. In the strongly correlated regime, where theoretical predictions only exist for the speed of sound, our measurements of vc provide a testing ground for theoretical approaches.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 095301 (2015)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1408.5239

Leon Mixa, Hans Keßler, Andreas Hemmerich, and Michael Thorwart

We show that the strong coupling of a quantum light field and correlated quantum matter induces exotic quantum fluctuations in the matter sector. We determine their spectral characteristics and reveal the impact of the atomic s-wave scattering. In particular, we derive the dissipative Landau and Beliaev processes from the microscopic Hamiltonian using imaginary-time path integrals. By this, their strongly sub-Ohmic nature is revealed analytically. A competition between damping and antidamping channels is uncovered. Their intricate influence on physical observables is quantified analytically and the Stokes shift of the critical point is determined. This illustrates the tunability of the quantum matter fluctuations by exploiting strong light-matter coupling.

Physical Review Research 6, L012024 (2024)

Jim Skulte, Phatthamon Kongkhambut, Sahana Rao, Ludwig Mathey, Hans Keßler, Andreas Hemmerich, and Jayson G. Cosme

We demonstrate the formation of a condensate in a dark state of momentum states, in a pumped and shaken cavity-BEC system. The system consists of an ultracold quantum gas in a high-finesse cavity, which is pumped transversely by a phase-modulated laser. This phase-modulated pumping couples the atomic ground state to a superposition of excited momentum states, which decouples from the cavity field. We demonstrate how to achieve condensation in this state, supported by time-of-flight and photon emission measurements. With this, we show that the dark state concept provides a general approach to efficiently prepare complex many-body states in an open quantum system.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 130, 163603 (2023)

Phatthamon Kongkhambut, Jim Skulte, Ludwig Mathey, Jayson G. Cosme, Andreas Hemmerich, and Hans Keßler

Time crystals are classified as discrete or continuous depending on whether they spontaneously break discrete or continuous time translation symmetry. While discrete time crystals have been extensively studied in periodically driven systems, the experimental realization of a continuous time crystal is still pending. We report the observation of a limit cycle phase in a continuously pumped dissipative atom-cavity system, that is characterized by emergent oscillations in the intracavity photon number. The phase of the oscillation found to be random for different realizations, and hence this dynamical many-body state breaks continuous time translation symmetry spontaneously. Furthermore, the observed limit cycles are robust against temporal perturbations and therefore demonstrate the realization of a continuous time crystal.

Science, First Release (2022)

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Skulte J., Kongkhambut P., Keßler H., Hemmerich A., Mathey L., Cosme J. G.

We investigate the three-level Dicke model, which describes a fundamental class of light-matter systems. We determine the phase diagram in the presence of dissipation, which we assume to derive from photon loss. Utilizing both analytical and numerical methods we characterize the incommensurate time crystalline, light-induced, and light-enhanced superradiant states in the phase diagram for the parametrically driven system. As a primary application, we demonstrate that a shaken atom-cavity system is naturally approximated via a parametrically driven dissipative three-level Dicke model.

PhysRevA.104.063705 (2021)

Kongkhambut P., Keßler H., Skulte J., Mathey L., Cosme J., Hemmerich A.

A periodically driven open three-level Dicke model is realized by resonantly shaking the pump field in an atom-cavity system. As an unambiguous signature, we demonstrate the emergence of a dynamical phase, in which the atoms periodically localize between the antinodes of the pump lattice, associated with an oscillating net momentum along the pump axis. We observe this dynamical phase through the periodic switching of the relative phase between the pump and cavity fields at a small fraction of the driving frequency, suggesting that it exhibits a time crystalline character.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 253601 (2021)

Georges C., Cosme J. G., Keßler H., Mathey L., Hemmerich A.

We theoretically and experimentally explore the emergence of a dynamical density wave (DW) order in a driven dissipative atom–cavity system. A Bose–Einstein condensate is placed inside a high finesse optical resonator and pumped sideways by an optical standing wave. The pump strength is chosen to induce a stationary superradiant checkerboard DW order of the atoms stabilized by a strong intracavity light field. We show theoretically that, when the pump is modulated with sufficient strength at a frequency ω_d close to a systemic resonance frequency ω_>, a dynamical DW order emerges, which oscillates at the two frequencies ω_> and ω_< = ω_d − ω_>. This order is associated with a characteristic momentum spectrum, also found in experiments in addition to remnants of the oscillatory dynamics presumably damped by on-site interaction and heating, not included in the calculations. The oscillating density grating, associated with this order, suppresses pump-induced light scattering into the cavity. Similar mechanisms might be conceivable in light-driven electronic matter.

New J. Phys. 23 023003 (2021)

Keßler H., Kongkhambut P., Georges C., Mathey L., Cosme J., Hemmerich A.

We present the first experimental realization of a time crystal stabilized by dissipation. The central signature in our implementation in a driven open atom-cavity system is a period doubled switching between distinct checkerboard density wave patterns, induced by the interplay between controlled cavity dissipation, cavity-mediated interactions, and external driving. We demonstrate the robustness of this dynamical phase against system parameter changes and temporal perturbations of the driving.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 043602 (2021)

Lin R., Georges C., Klinder J. S., Molignini P., Büttner M., Lode A. U. J., Chitra R., Hemmerich A., Keßler H.

The competition between short-range and cavity-mediated infinite-range interactions in a cavity-boson system leads to the existence of a superfluid phase and a Mott-insulator phase within the self-organized regime. In this work, we quantitatively compare the steady-state phase boundaries of this transition measured in experiments and simulated using the Multiconfigurational Time-Dependent Hartree Method for Indistinguishable Particles. To make the problem computationally feasible, we represent the full system by the exact many-body wave function of a two-dimensional four-well potential. We argue that the validity of this representation comes from the nature of both the cavity-atomic system and the Bose-Hubbard physics. Additionally we show that the chosen representation only induces small systematic errors, and that the experimentally measured and theoretically predicted phase boundaries agree reasonably. We thus demonstrate a new approach for the quantitative numerical determination of the superfluid--Mott-insulator phase boundary.

SciPost Phys. 11, 030 (2021)

Keßler H., Cosme J. G., Georges C., Mathey L., Hemmerich A.

We propose the dynamical stabilization of a nonequilibrium order in a driven dissipative system comprised an atomic Bose–Einstein condensate inside a high finesse optical cavity, pumped with an optical standing wave operating in the regime of anomalous dispersion. When the amplitude of the pump field is modulated close to twice the characteristic limit-cycle frequency of the unmodulated system, a stable subharmonic response is found. The dynamical phase diagram shows that this subharmonic response occurs in a region expanded with respect to that where stable limit-cycle dynamics occurs for the unmodulated system. In turning on the modulation we tune the atom-cavity system from a continuous to a discrete time crystal.

New J. Phys. 22 085002 (2020)

Hans Keßler, Jayson G. Cosme, Michal Hemmerling, Ludwig Mathey, and Andreas Hemmerich

We propose an experimental realization of a time crystal using an atomic Bose-Einstein condensate in a high finesse optical cavity pumped with laser light detuned to the blue side of the relevant atomic resonance. By mapping out the dynamical phase diagram, we identify regions in parameter space showing stable limit cycle dynamics. Since the model describing the system is time independent, the emergence of a limit cycle phase indicates the breaking of continuous time translation symmetry. Employing a semiclassical analysis to demonstrate the robustness of the limit cycles against perturbations and quantum fluctuations, we establish the emergence of a time crystal.

Phys. Rev. A 99, 053605 (2019)

N. Mann, M. Reza Bakhtiari, A. Pelster, M. Thorwart

We consider a hybrid quantum many-body system formed by a vibrational mode of a nanomembrane, which interacts optomechanically with light in a cavity, and an ultracold atom gas in the optical lattice of the out-coupled light. The adiabatic elimination of the light field yields an effective Hamiltonian which reveals a competition between the force localizing the atoms and the membrane displacement. At a critical atom-membrane interaction, we find a nonequilibrium quantum phase transition from a localized symmetric state of the atom cloud to a shifted symmetry-broken state, the energy of the lowest collective excitation vanishes, and a strong atom-membrane entanglement arises. The effect occurs when the atoms and the membrane are nonresonantly coupled.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 120, 063605 (2018)

Jayson G. Cosme, Christoph Georges, Andreas Hemmerich, and Ludwig Mathey

We demonstrate dynamical control of the superradiant transition of cavity-BEC system via periodic driving of the pump laser. We show that the dominant density wave order of the superradiant state can be suppressed, and that the subdominant competing order of Bose-Einstein condensation emerges in the steady state. Furthermore, we show that additional, nonequilibrium density wave orders, which do not exist in equilibrium, can be stabilized dynamically. Finally, for strong driving, chaotic dynamics emerge.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 153001 (2018)

C. Georges, J. G. Cosme, L. Mathey, A. Hemmerich

We demonstrate a light-induced formation of coherence in a cold atomic gas system that utilizes the suppression of a competing density wave (DW) order. The condensed atoms are placed in an optical cavity and pumped by an external optical standing wave, which induces a long-range interaction mediated by photon scattering and a resulting DW order above a critical pump strength. We show that the light-induced temporal modulation of the pump wave can suppress this DW order and restore coherence. This establishes a foundational principle of dynamical control of competing orders analogous to a hypothesized mechanism for light-induced superconductivity in high-T_c cuprates.

Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 220405 (2018)

Ch. Georges, J. Vargas, H. Keßler, J. Klinder, A. Hemmerich

This article complements previous work on the nondestructive observation of Bloch oscillations of a Bose-Einstein condensate in an optical lattice formed inside a high-finesse optical cavity [H. Keßler et al., New J. Phys. 18, 102001 (2016)]. We present measurements showing that the observed Bloch frequency is independent of the atom number and hence the cooperative coupling strength, the intracavity lattice depth, and the detuning between the external pump light and the effective cavity resonance. We find that in agreement with theoretical predictions, despite the atom-cavity dynamics, the value of the Bloch frequency agrees with that expected in conventional optical lattices, where it solely depends on the sizes of the force and the lattice constant. We also show that Bloch oscillations are observed in a self-organized two-dimensional lattice, which is formed if, instead of axially pumping the cavity through one of its mirrors, the Bose-Einstein condensate is irradiated by an optical standing wave oriented perpendicularly with respect to the cavity axis. For this case, however, excessive decoherence prevents a meaningful quantitative assessment.

Physical Review A 96, 063615 (2017)

N. Mann, M. Reza Bakhtiari, F. Massel, A. Pelster, M. Thorwart

We investigate a one-dimensional Bose–Hubbard model in a parametrically driven global harmonic trap. The delicate interplay of both the local interaction of the atoms in the lattice and the driving of the global trap allows us to control the dynamical stability of the trapped quantum many-body state. The impact of the atomic interaction on the dynamical stability of the driven quantum many-body state is revealed in the regime of weak interaction by analyzing a discretized Gross–Pitaevskii equation within a Gaussian variational ansatz, yielding a Mathieu equation for the condensate width. The parametric resonance condition is shown to be modified by the atom interaction strength. In particular, the effective eigenfrequency is reduced for growing interaction in the mean-field regime. For a stronger interaction, the impact of the global parametric drive is determined by the numerically exact time-evolving block decimation scheme. When the trapped bosons in the lattice are in a Mott insulating state, the absorption of energy from the driving field is suppressed due to the strongly reduced local compressibility of the quantum many-body state. In particular, we find that the width of the local Mott region shows a breathing dynamics. Finally, we observe that the global modulation also induces an effective time-independent inhomogeneous hopping strength for the atoms.

Phys. Rev. A 95, 043604 (2017)

H. Keßler, J. Klinder, B. Prasanna Venkatesh, Ch. Georges, A. Hemmerich

It is shown experimentally that a Bose-Einstein condensate inside an optical cavity, operating in the regime of strong cooperative coupling, responds to an external force by an optomechanical Bloch oscillation, which can be directly observed in the light leaking out of the cavity. Previous theoretical work predicts that the frequency of this oscillation matches with that of conventional Bloch oscillations such that its in-situ monitoring may help to increase the data acquisition speed in precision force measurements.

New Journal of Physics 18, 102001 (2016)
https://arxiv.org/abs/1606.08386

J. Klinder, H. Keßler, M. Wolke, L. Mathey, A. Hemmerich

The Dicke model with a weak dissipation channel is realized by coupling a Bose–Einstein condensate to an optical cavity with ultranarrow bandwidth. We explore the dynamical critical properties of the Hepp–Lieb–Dicke phase transition by performing quenches across the phase boundary. We observe hysteresis in the transition between a homogeneous phase and a self-organized collective phase with an enclosed loop area showing power-law scaling with respect to the quench time, which suggests an interpretation within a general framework introduced by Kibble and Zurek. The observed hysteretic dynamics is well reproduced by numerically solving the mean-field equation derived from a generalized Dicke Hamiltonian. Our work promotes the understanding of nonequilibrium physics in open many-body systems with infinite range interactions.

PNAS 112, 3290 (2015)

J. Klinder, H. Keßler, M. Reza Bakhtiari, M. Thorwart, and A. Hemmerich

It is well known that the bosonic Hubbard model possesses a Mott insulator phase. Likewise, it is known that the Dicke model exhibits a self-organized superradiant phase. By implementing an optical lattice inside of a high finesse optical cavity both models are merged such that an extended Hubbard model with cavity-mediated infinite range interactions arises. In addition to a normal superfluid phase, two superradiant phases are found, one of them coherent and hence superfluid and one incoherent Mott insulating.

Physical Review Letters 115, 230403 (2015)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1511.00850

M. R. Bakhtiari, A. Hemmerich, H. Ritsch, M. Thorwart

We investigate the nonlinear light-matter interaction of a Bose-Einstein condensate trapped in an external periodic potential inside an optical cavity, which is weakly coupled to the vacuum radiation modes and driven by a transverse pump field. Based on a generalized Bose-Hubbard model, which incorporates a single cavity mode, we include the collective back action of the atoms on the cavity light field and determine the nonequilibrium quantum phases within the non-perturbative bosonic dynamical mean-field theory. With the system parameters adapted to recent experiments, we find a quantum phase transition from a normal phase to a self-organized superfluid phase, which is related to the Hepp-Lieb-Dicke phase transition. For even stronger pumping, a self-organized Mott insulator phase arises.

Physical Review Letters 114, 123601 (2015)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1410.5735

H. Keßler, J. Klinder, M. Wolke, A. Hemmerich

A superfluid atomic gas is prepared inside an optical resonator with an ultra-narrow band width on the order of the single photon recoil energy. When a monochromatic off-resonant laser beam irradiates the atoms, above a critical intensity the cavity emits superradiant light pulses with a duration on the order of its photon storage time. The atoms are collectively scattered into coherent superpositions of discrete momentum states, which can be precisely controlled by adjusting the cavity resonance frequency. With appropriate pulse sequences the entire atomic sample can be collectively accelerated or decelerated by multiples of two recoil momenta. The instability boundary for the onset of matter wave superradiance is recorded and its main features are explained by a mean field model.

Physical Review Letters 113, 070404 (2014)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1407.4954

H. Keßler, J. Klinder, M. Wolke, A. Hemmerich

We study the optomechanical interaction of a Bose-Einstein condensate with a single longitudinal mode of an ultra-high finesse standing wave optical resonator. As a unique feature the resonator combines three extreme regimes, previously not realized together, i.e., strong cooperative coupling, cavity dominated scattering with a Purcell factor far above unity, and sub-recoil resolution provided by a cavity damping rate smaller than four times the single photon recoil frequency. We present experimental observations in good agreement with a two-mode model predicting highly non-linear dynamics with signatures as bistability, hysteresis, persistent oscillations, and superradiant back-scattering instabilities.

New Journal of Physics 16, 053008 (2014)
http://arxiv.org/abs/1403.3545

M. Wolke, J. Klinner, H. Keßler, A. Hemmerich

Conventional laser cooling relies on repeated electronic excitations by near-resonant light, which constrains its area of application to a selected number of atomic species prepared at moderate particle densities. Optical cavities with sufficiently large Purcell factors allow for laser cooling schemes avoiding these limitations. Here, we report on an atom-cavity system, combining a Purcell factor above 40 with a cavity bandwidth below the recoil frequency associated with the kinetic energy transfer in a single photon scattering event. This lets us access a yet unexplored regime of atom-cavity interactions, in which the atomic motion can be manipulated by targeted dissipation with sub-recoil resolution. We demonstrate cavity-induced heating of a Bose-Einstein condensate and subsequent cooling at particle densities and temperatures incompatible with conventional laser cooling.

Science 337, 85-87 (2012)

C. Hübner, B. Baxevanis, A. A. Khajetoorians, D. Pfannkuche

Highly symmetric magnetic environments have been suggested to stabilize the magnetic information stored in magnetic adatoms on a surface. Utilized as memory devices such systems are subjected to electron tunneling and external magnetic fields. We analyze theoretically how such perturbations affect the switching probability of a single quantum spin for two characteristic symmetries encountered in recent experiments and suggest a third one that exhibits robust protection against surface-induced spin flips. Further we illuminate how the switching of an adatom spin exhibits characteristic behavior with respect to low energy excitations from which the symmetry of the system can be inferred.

Phys. Rev. B 90, 155134 (2014)

M. Prada, E.-M. Richter, D. Pfannkuche

Two-component mixtures in optical lattices reveal a rich variety of different phases. We employ an exact diagonalization method to obtain the relevant correlation functions in hexagonal optical lattices which characterize those phases. We relate the occupation difference of the two species to the magnetic polarization. “Iso” -magnetic correlations disclose the nature of the system, which can be of easy-axis type, bearing phase segregation, or of easy-plane type, corresponding to super-counter-fluidity. In the latter case, the correlations reveal easy-plane segregation, involving a highly entangled state. We identify striking correlated supersolid phases appearing within the superfluid limit.

Phys. Rev. A 90, 013613 (2014)

A. L. Chudnovskiy, D. M. Gangardt, A. Kamenev

Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 085302 (2012)

J. Chen, S.I. Mistakidis and P. Schmelcher

We unravel the correlated quantum quench dynamics of a single impurity immersed in a bosonic environment confined in an one-dimensional double-well potential. A particular emphasis is placed on the structure of the time-evolved many-body (MB) wave function by relying on a Schmidt decomposition whose coefficients directly quantify the number of configurations that are macroscopically populated. For a non-interacting bosonic bath and weak postquench impurity-bath interactions, we observe the dynamical formation of a two-fold fragmented MB state which is related to intra-band excitation processes of the impurity and manifests as a two-body phase separation (clustering) between the two species for repulsive (attractive) interactions. Increasing the postquench impurity-bath coupling strength leads to the destruction of the two-fold fragmentation since the impurity undergoes additional inter-band excitation dynamics. By contrast, a weakly interacting bath suppresses excitations of the bath particles and consequently the system attains a weakly fragmented MB state. Our results explicate the interplay of intra- and inter-band impurity excitations for the dynamical generation of fragmented MB states in multi-well traps and for designing specific entangled impurity states.

J. Phys B 56, 075003 (2023)

I. A. Englezos, S. I. Mistakidis, and P. Schmelcher

We address the existence and dynamics of one-dimensional harmonically confined quantum droplets appearing in two-component mixtures by deploying a nonperturbative approach. We find that, in symmetric homonuclear settings, beyond-Lee-Huang-Yang correlations result in flat-top droplet configurations for either decreasing intercomponent attraction or larger atom number. Asymmetric mixtures feature spatial mixing among the involved components with the more strongly interacting or heavier one exhibiting flat-top structures. Applying quenches on the harmonic trap we trigger the lowest-lying collective droplet excitations. The interaction-dependent breathing frequency, being slightly reduced in the presence of correlations, shows a decreasing trend for stronger attractions. Semianalytical predictions are also obtained within the Lee-Huang-Yang framework. For relatively large quench amplitudes the droplet progressively delocalizes and higher-lying motional excitations develop in its core. Simultaneously, enhanced intercomponent entanglement and long-range two-body intracomponent correlations arise. In sharp contrast, the dipole motion remains robust irrespective of the system parameters. Species-selective quenches lead to a correlation-induced dephasing of the droplet or to irregular dipole patterns due to intercomponent collisions.

Physical Review A 107, 023320 (2023)

F. Theel, S.I. Mistakidis, K. Keiler and P. Schmelcher

The counterflow dynamics of two correlated impurities in a double well coupled to a one-dimensional bosonic medium is explored. We determine the ground-state phase diagram of the system according to the impurity-medium entanglement and the impurities' two-body correlations. Specifically, bound impurity structures reminiscent of bipolarons for strong attractive couplings as well as configurations with two clustered or separated impurities in the repulsive case are identified. The interval of existence of these phases depends strongly on the impurity-impurity interactions and external confinement of the medium. Accordingly the impurities' dynamical response, triggered by suddenly ramping down the central potential barrier, is affected by the medium's trapping geometry. In particular, for a box-confined medium, repulsive impurity-medium couplings lead, due to attractive induced interactions, to the localization of the impurities around the trap center. In contrast, for a harmonically trapped medium the impurities perform a periodic collision and expansion dynamics further interpreted in terms of a two-body effective model. Our findings elucidate the correlation aspects of the collisional physics of impurities which should be accessible in recent cold-atom experiments.

Physical Review A 105, 053314 (2022)

A. Romero-Ros, G. C. Katsimiga, S. I. Mistakidis, B. Prinari, G. Biondini, P. Schmelcher, and P. G. Kevrekidis

The present work is motivated by the recent experimental realization of the Townes soliton in an effective two-component Bose-Einstein condensate by B. Bakkali-Hassan et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 023603 (2021)]. Here, we use a similar multicomponent platform to exemplify theoretically and numerically, within the mean-field Gross-Pitaevskii framework, the potential toward the experimental realization of a different fundamental wave structure, namely the Peregrine soliton. Leveraging the effective attractive interaction produced within the mixture's minority species in the immiscible regime, we illustrate how initialization of the condensate with a suitable power-law decaying spatial density pattern yields the robust emergence of the Peregrine wave in the absence and in the presence of a parabolic trap. We then showcase the spontaneous emergence of the Peregrine soliton via a suitably crafted wide Gaussian initialization, again both in the homogeneous case and in the trap scenario. It is also found that narrower wave packets may result in periodic revivals of the Peregrine soliton, while broader ones give rise to a cascade of Peregrine solitons arranged in a so-called Christmas-tree structure. Strikingly, the persistence of these rogue-wave structures is demonstrated in certain temperature regimes as well as in the presence of transversal excitations through three-dimensional computations in a quasi-one-dimensional regime. This proof-of-principle illustration is expected to represent a practically feasible way to generate and observe this rogue wave in realistic current ultracold atom experimental settings.

Phys. Rev. A 105, 053306 (2022)

J. Chen, S.I. Mistakidis and P. Schmelcher

We investigate the polaronic properties of a single impurity immersed in a weakly interacting bosonic environment confined within a one-dimensional double-well potential using an exact diagonalization approach. We find that an increase of the impurity–bath coupling results in a vanishing residue, signifying the occurrence of the polaron orthogonality catastrophe. Asymptotic configurations of the systems' ground state wave function in the strongly interacting regime are obtained by means of a Schmidt decomposition, which in turn accounts for the observed orthogonality catastrophe of the polaron. We exemplify that depending on the repulsion of the Bose gas, three distinct residue behaviors appear with respect to the impurity–bath coupling. These residue regimes are characterized by two critical values of the bosonic repulsion and originate from the interplay between the intra- and the interband excitations of the impurity. Moreover, they can be clearly distinguished in the corresponding species reduced density matrices with the latter revealing a phase separation on either the one- or the two-body level. The impact of the interspecies mass-imbalance on the impurity's excitation processes is appreciated yielding an interaction shift of the residue regions. Our results explicate the interplay of intra- and interband excitation processes for the polaron generation in multiwell traps and for designing specific polaron entangled states motivating their exposure in current experiments.

New Journal of Physics 24, 033004 (2022)

A. Romero-Ros, G. C. Katsimiga, P. G. Kevrekidis, B. Prinari, G. Biondini, and P. Schmelcher

The controlled creation of dark-bright (DB) soliton trains in multicomponent Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) is a topic of ongoing interest. In this work we generalize earlier findings on the creation of dark soliton trains in single-component BECs [A. Romero-Ros et al., Phys. Rev. A 103, 023329 (2021)] to two-component BECs. By ch