X-ray-Induced Molecular Catapult: Ultrafast Dynamics Driven by Lightweight Linkages
In our work, we demonstrate that X-ray photons can initiate a "molecular catapult" effect, leading to the dissociation of chemical bonds and the formation of heavy fragments within just a few femtoseconds. We reconstruct the momenta of fragments from a three-body dissociation in bromochloromethane using the ion pair average (IPA) reference frame, demonstrating how light atomic groups, such as alkylene and alkanylene, can govern nuclear dynamics during the dissociation process, akin to projectiles released by a catapult. Supported by <i>ab initio</i> calculations, this work highlights the crucial role of low-reduced-mass vibrational modes in driving ultrafast chemical processes.
Authors
- Barbara Cunha de Miranda
- T. Jahnke (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1358-5629)
- Gregor Kastirke
- M. Simon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2525-5435)
- Victor Kimberg (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1269-8760)
- R. Guillemin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9239-7372)
- Iyas Ismail (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2007-6419)
- T. Marchenko (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9015-3339)
- M. N. Piancaśtelli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3303-7494)
- S. Carniato (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6292-4688)
- Oksana Travnikova (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9504-3692)
- Florian Trinter (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0891-9180)
- M. S. Schöffler
- R. Dörner
Institutions
- Goethe University Frankfurt (DE)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society (DE)
- Sorbonne Université (FR)
- Laboratoire de Chimie Physique - Matière et Rayonnement (FR)
- Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics (DE)
- KTH Royal Institute of Technology (SE)
- European X-Ray Free-Electron Laser (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters
- Published
- 2024-11-21
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpclett.4c02511
- Citations
- 3
- Primary Topic
- Mass Spectrometry Techniques and Applications
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.72
Funders
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Swedish Foundation for International Cooperation in Research and Higher Education
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie