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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 91 records · Page 5

Electron correlation effects in attosecond photoionization of CO 2

A technique for measuring photoionization time delays with attosecond precision is combined with calculations of photoionization matrix elements to demonstrate how multielectron dynamics affect photoionization time delays in carbon dioxide. Electron correlation is observed to affect the time delays through two mechanisms: autoionization of molecular Rydberg states and accelerated escape from a continuum shape resonance.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

Photoionization of the 3 s 2 3 p 4 3 P and the 3 s 2 3 p 4 1 D , 1 S states of sulfur: Experiment and theory

Photoionization of neutral atomic sulfur in the ground and metastable states was studied experimentally at a photon energy resolution of 44 meV FWHM. Relative cross section measurements were recorded by using tunable vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) radiation in the energy range 9-30 eV obtained from a laser-produced plasma and the atomic species were generated by photolysis of molecular precursors. Photoionization of this atom is characterized by multiple Rydberg series of autoionizing resonances superimposed on a direct photoionization continuum. A wealth of resonance features observed in the experimental spectra are spectroscopically assigned and their energies and quantum defects tabulated. The cross-section measurements are compared with state-of-the-art theoretical cross-section calculations obtained from the Dirac Coulomb $R$-matrix method. The resonances series in the spectra are identified and compared indicating similar features in both the theoretical and experimental spectra.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Reconstruction of the complex angle-dependent photoionization transition dipole from a laser-dressed streaking experiment

We study the retrieval of the angular dependence of the photoionization transition dipole phase of an attosecond XUV pulse in order to reconstruct the whole photoelectron wave packet after the photoemission process. Using a one-electron model Ar atom, we show that the full electron wave packet can be reconstructed from IR-free photoelectron angular distributions and the streaking electron spectra in an IR-dressed XUV photoionization, with photoelectrons along the common polarization direction of the two pulses. The method relies on the validity of the strong-field approximation so it is valid only for higher energy photoelectrons. Here, we also point out that a single photoionization group time delay is not enough to represent a photoemission process; instead, a complete characterization of the electron wave packet requires the retrieval of the spectral phase over the whole bandwidth of the wave packet.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

Attosecond photoionization delays in the vicinity of molecular Feshbach resonances

Temporal delays extracted from photoionization phases are currently determined with attosecond resolution by using interferometric methods. Such methods require special care when photoionization occurs near Feshbach resonances due to the interference between direct ionization and autoionization. Although theory can accurately handle these interferences in atoms, in molecules, it has to face an additional, so far insurmountable problem: Autoionization is slow, and nuclei move substantially while it happens, i.e., electronic and nuclear motions are coupled. Here, we present a theoretical framework to account for this effect and apply it to evaluate time-resolved and vibrationally resolved photoelectron spectra and photoionization phases of N 2 irradiated by a combination of an extreme ultraviolet (XUV) attosecond pulse train and an infrared pulse. We show that Feshbach resonances lead to unusual non–Franck-Condon vibrational progressions and to ionization phases that strongly vary with photoelectron energy irrespective of the vibrational state of the remaining molecular cation.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

Vacuum Ultraviolet Photoionization of Complex Chemical Systems

Tunable vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) radiation coupled to mass spectrometry is applied to the study of complex chemical systems in this paper. The identification of novel reactive intermediates and radicals is revealed in flame, pulsed photolysis, and pyrolysis reactors, leading to the elucidation of spectroscopy, reaction mechanisms, and kinetics. Mass-resolved threshold photoelectron photoion coincidence measurements provide unprecedented access to vibrationally resolved spectra of free radicals present in high-temperature reactors. Photoionization measurements in water clusters, nucleic acid base dimers, and their complexes with water provide signatures of proton transfer in hydrogen-bonded and π-stacked systems. Experimental and theoretical methods to track ion–molecule reactions and fragmentation pathways in intermolecular and intramolecular hydrogen-bonded systems in sugars and alcohols are described. Photoionization of laser-ablated molecules, clusters, and their reaction products inform thermodynamics and spectroscopy that are relevant to astrochemistry and catalysis. Finally, new directions in coupling VUV radiation to interrogate complex chemical systems are discussed.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Radon Photoionization: Project Technical Report

In most low-background physics experiments, radon is a significant and problematic source of background radiation because it is inert and sufficiently long-lived to pervade laboratory spaces. It may be possible to manipulate (and thus mitigate) radon electromagnetically by taking advantage of its relatively low first ionization energy. When considering ambient-temperature gas phases, only iodine is comparable. The other noble gases, and the most important constituents of breathable air (nitrogen and oxygen), all have higher ionization energies; so it may be possible to selectively manipulate radon in a variety of gas streams by ionizing it with an appropriately low-energy source of photons. Radon’s first ionization energy is in the vacuum UV part of the electromagnetic spectrum, which can be produced using a deuterium lamp. In this report, we present our attempts to manipulate radon via UV photoionization in a laboratory setting. This approach has the potential to increase radon removal efficiency from gases and/or to improve the efficiency of radon detectors. Unfortunately, our experiments suggest that either the life-time of a photoionized radon ion (before it re-neutralizes) is too short to be of much practical use and/or that our low-cost UV-photon source was not sufficiently energetic for efficient photoionization of radon.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Catastrophic Cooling in Superwinds. III. Nonequilibrium Photoionization

Observations of some starburst-driven galactic superwinds suggest that strong radiative cooling could play a key role in the nature of feedback and the formation of stars and molecular gas in star-forming galaxies. These catastrophically cooling superwinds are not adequately described by adiabatic fluid models, but they can be reproduced by incorporating nonequilibrium radiative cooling functions into the fluid model. In this work, we have employed the atomic and cooling module maihem implemented in the framework of the flash hydrodynamics code to simulate the formation of radiatively cooling superwinds as well as their corresponding nonequilibrium ionization (NEI) states for various outflow parameters, gas metallicities, and ambient densities. We employ the photoionization program cloudy to predict radiation- and density-bounded photoionization for these radiatively cooling superwinds, and we predict UV and optical line emission. Our nonequilibrium photoionization models built with the NEI states demonstrate the enhancement of C iv, especially in metal-rich, catastrophically cooling outflows, and O vi in metal-poor ones.

Cooling flows↗

X-ray heating and electron temperature of laboratory photoionized plasmas

We discuss experimental and modeling results for the x-ray heating and temperature of laboratory photoionized plasmas. A method is used to extract electron temperature based on the analysis of transmission spectroscopy data that is independent of atomic kinetics modeling. Boltzmann kinetic and radiation-hydrodynamics simulations emphasized the critical interplay between atomic physics and heating in photoionized plasmas. They also demonstrated the dramatic impact of photoexcitation on excited state populations, line emissivity, and radiation cooling. Temperature calculations performed with astrophysical codes significantly overestimated the measurement.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Direct Experimental Observation of the Tetrabromine Cluster Br 4 by Synchrotron Photoionization Mass Spectrometry

We present a first spectroscopic characterization of the homoatomic polyhalogen tetrabromine, Br 4 , in the gas phase. Photolysis of CHBr 3 at 248 nm is used to generate atomic bromine radicals in a flow tube reactor. Resulting combination products are detected by photoionization mass spectrometry at the Advanced Light Source of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Interpretation of the experimental mass spectra is informed by calculated adiabatic ionization energies carried out at the CCSD(T)/aug-cc-pVTZ//M06-2X/aug-cc-pVTZ and CCSD(T)/aug-cc-pVTZ//cam-B3LYP/6-311++g** levels of theory. Tunable VUV synchrotron radiation enables the collection of the mass-selected photoionization spectra by which Br 4 is assigned using Franck-Condon simulations of a Br 2 dimer with a stretched tetrahedral geometry.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Direct Analysis of Organic Compounds in Liquid Using a Miniature Photoionization Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer with Pulsed Carrier-Gas Capillary Inlet

A miniature ion trap mass spectrometer with capillary direct sampling and vacuum ultraviolet photoionization source was developed to conduct trace analysis of organic compounds in liquids. Self-aspiration sampling is available where the samples are drawn into the vacuum chamber through a capillary with an extremely low flow rate (less than 1 μL/min), which minimizes sample consumption in each analysis to tens of micrograms. A pulsed gas-assisted inlet was designed and optimized to promote sample transmission in the tube and facilitate the cooling of ions, thereby improving instrument sensitivity. A limit of detection of 2 ppb could be achieved for 2,4-dimethylaniline in a methanol solution. The sampling system described in the present study is specifically suitable for a miniature photoionization ion trap mass spectrometer that can perform rapid and online analysis for liquid samples. .

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Photoionization of P + : Experiment and theory

An experimental and theoretical study of the single photoionization cross section of the P + cation of phosphorus is presented. Photoionization (PI) cross sections are instrumental for the determination of abundances in the interstellar medium. The experiment was performed by merging an ion beam with a photon beam. The photon beam was nearly monochromatic and had an energy resolution of 24 meV. Calculations were carried out using the Breit–Pauli R-matrix method. The combined study was developed in the photon energy interval from 18 eV (68.9 nm) to 50 eV (24.8 nm). Comparison between the measured and the calculated cross section shows good agreement in general and identifies features of the process and existence of states in the experimental beam. Here the present results should provide for more accurate modeling of P + .

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Photoionization of C 4 H 5 Isomers

In this work, single-photon, photoelectron–photoion coincidence spectroscopy is used to record the mass-selected ion spectra and slow photoelectron spectra of C 4 H 5 radicals produced by the abstraction of hydrogen atoms from three C 4 H 6 precursors by fluorine atoms generated by a microwave discharge. Three different C 4 H 5 isomers are identified, with the relative abundances depending on the nature of the precursor (1-butyne, 1,2-butadiene, and 1,3-butadiene). The results are compared with our previous work using 2-butyne as a precursor [ Hrodmarsson, H. R. J. Phys. Chem. A 2019 , 123 , 1521-1528]. The slow photoelectron spectra provide new information on the three radical isomers that is in good agreement with previous experimental and theoretical results [ Lang, M. J. Phys. Chem. A 2015 , 119 , 3995-4000; Hansen, N. J. Phys. Chem. A 2006 , 110 , 3670–3678]. The energy scans of the C 4 H 5 photoionization signal are recorded with substantially better resolution and signal-to-noise ratio than those in earlier work, allowing the observation of autoionizing resonances based on excited states of the C 4 H 5 cation. Photoelectron images recorded at several energies are also reported, providing insight into the decay processes of these excited states. Finally, in contrast to the earlier work using 2-butyne as a precursor, where H-atom abstraction was the only observed process, F- and H-atom additions to the present precursors are also observed through the detection of C 4 H 6 F, C 4 H 5 F, and C 4 H 7

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Double momentum spectrometer for ion-electron vector correlations in dissociative photoionization

We have developed a new momentum spectrometer dedicated to momentum vector correlations in the context of deep core photoionization of atomic and molecular species in the gas phase. In this article, we describe the design and operation of the experimental setup. The capabilities of the apparatus are illustrated with a set of measurements done on the sulphur core 1s photoionization of gas-phase CS{sub 2}.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Frequency dependence of electron dynamics during femtosecond laser resonant photoionization of Li{sub 4} cluster

This study investigates the resonant effects on nonlinear photoionization of Li{sub 4} cluster under femtosecond laser irradiation. The real-time and real-space time-dependent density functional theory is applied to describe the optical linear response and nonlinear electron dynamics during the laser-material interactions. The calculations describe well the behaviors of the ionization process for both the off resonance and on resonance cases. For given laser intensities, the frequency dependence of electron ionization and energy absorption on multiphoton and/or tunnel ionization mechanisms is investigated. Theoretical results show that (1) the off resonance behaves as a classical oscillator whereas resonance leads to an internal excitation with subsequent emission of electrons after the laser termination; (2) when multiphoton ionization dominates, the frequency dependence of emitted electrons and absorbed energy coincides with trend of the spectral cross section for photon absorption; (3) while when tunnel ionization becomes significant, the aforementioned correlation gradually disappears, and the enhancement of resonant effect on photoionization is not manifest.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Dissociation of internal energy-selected methyl bromide ion revealed from threshold photoelectron-photoion coincidence velocity imaging

Dissociative photoionization of methyl bromide (CH{sub 3}Br) in an excitation energy range of 10.45–16.90 eV has been investigated by using threshold photoelectron-photoion coincidence (TPEPICO) velocity imaging. The coincident time-of-flight mass spectra indicate that the ground state X{sup 2}E of CH{sub 3}Br{sup +} is stable, and both A{sup 2}A{sub 1} and B{sup 2}E ionic excited states are fully dissociative to produce the unique fragment ion of CH{sub 3}{sup +}. From TPEPICO 3D time-sliced velocity images of CH{sub 3}{sup +} dissociated from specific state-selected CH{sub 3}Br{sup +} ion, kinetic energy release distribution (KERD) and angular distribution of CH{sub 3}{sup +} fragment ion are directly obtained. Both spin-orbit states of Br({sup 2}P) atom can be clearly observed in fast dissociation of CH{sub 3}Br{sup +}(A{sup 2}A{sub 1}) ion along C–Br rupture, while a KERD of Maxwell-Boltzmann profile is obtained in dissociation of CH{sub 3}Br{sup +}(B{sup 2}E) ion. With the aid of the re-calculated potential energy curves of CH{sub 3}Br{sup +} including spin-orbit coupling, dissociation mechanisms of CH{sub 3}Br{sup +} ion in A{sup 2}A{sub 1} and B{sup 2}E states along C–Br rupture are revealed. For CH{sub 3}Br{sup +}(A{sup 2}A{sub 1}) ion, the CH{sub 3}{sup +} + Br({sup 2}P{sub 1/2}) channel is occurred via an adiabatic dissociation by vibration, while the Br({sup 2}P{sub 3/2}) formation is through vibronic coupling to the high vibrational level of X{sup 2}E state followed by rapid dissociation. C–Br bond breaking of CH{sub 3}Br{sup +}(B{sup 2}E) ion can occur via slow internal conversion to the excited vibrational level of the lower electronic states and then dissociation.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

Communication: The influence of vibrational parity in chiral photoionization dynamics

A pronounced vibrational state dependence of photoelectron angular distributions observed in chiral photoionization experiments is explored using a simple, yet realistic, theoretical model based upon the transiently chiral molecule H{sub 2}O{sub 2}. The adiabatic approximation is used to separate vibrational and electronic wavefunctions. The full ionization matrix elements are obtained as an average of the electronic dipole matrix elements over the vibrational coordinate, weighted by the product of neutral and ion state vibrational wavefunctions. It is found that the parity of the vibrational Hermite polynomials influences not just the amplitude, but also the phase of the transition matrix elements, and the latter is sufficient, even in the absence of resonant enhancements, to account for enhanced vibrational dependencies in the chiral photoionization dynamics.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Isotope effects and spectroscopic assignments in the non-dissociative photoionization spectrum of N{sub 2}

Photoionization efficiency spectra of {sup 14}N{sub 2}, {sup 15}N{sup 14}N, and {sup 15}N{sub 2} from 15.5 to 18.9 eV were measured using synchrotron radiation at the Advanced Light Source at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory with a resolution of 6 meV, and significant changes in peak energies and intensities upon isotopic substitution were observed. Previously, we reported the isotope shifts and their applications to Titan's atmosphere. Here, we report more extensive experimental details and tabulate the isotope shifts of many transitions in the N{sub 2} spectrum, including those for {sup 15}N{sup 14}N, which have not been previously reported. The isotope shifts are used to address several long-standing ambiguities in spectral peak assignments just above the ionization threshold of N{sub 2}. The feature at 15.677 eV (the so-called second “cathedral” peak) is of particular interest in this respect. The measured isotope shifts for this peak relative to {sup 14}N{sub 2} are 0.015 ± 0.001 eV for {sup 15}N{sub 2} and 0.008 ± 0.001 eV for {sup 15}N{sup 14}N, which match most closely with the isotope shifts predicted for transitions to the (A {sup 2}Π{sub u} v{sup ′} = 2)4sσ{sub g} {sup 1}Π{sub u} state using Herzberg equations for the isotopic differences in harmonic oscillator energy levels plus the first anharmonic correction of 0.0143 eV for {sup 15}N{sub 2} and 0.0071 eV for {sup 15}N{sup 14}N. More generally, the isotope shifts measured for both {sup 15}N{sub 2} and {sup 15}N{sup 14}N relative to {sup 14}N{sub 2} provide new benchmarks for theoretical calculations of interferences between direct and indirect autoionization states which can interact to produce intricate resonant structures in molecular photoionization spectra in regions near ionization thresholds.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

Spectral investigations of photoionized plasmas induced in atomic and molecular gases using nanosecond extreme ultraviolet (EUV) pulses

In this paper, results of spectral investigations of low temperature photoionized plasmas, created by irradiation of gases with intense pulses of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation from a laser-produced plasma (LPP) source, are presented. The LPP source was based on a double-stream KrXe/He gas-puff target irradiated with 4 ns/0.8 J/10 Hz Nd:YAG laser pulses. The most intense emission from the source spanned a relatively narrow spectral region λ ≈ 10–12 nm; however, spectrally integrated intensity at longer wavelengths was also significant. The EUV beam was focused on a gas stream, injected into a vacuum chamber synchronously with the EUV pulses. Irradiation of gases resulted in formation of photoionized plasmas emitting radiation in the EUV range. Radiation spectra, measured for plasmas produced in various gases, are dominated by emission lines, originating from single charged ions. Significant differences in spectral intensities and distributions between plasmas created in neon and molecular gases were observed.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗