Chemical Reaction in Focus: Ultrafast Motion of Electrons Captured on Camera

Film Frames Lasting Femtoseconds

According to НВ — Техно: Electrons involved in a chemical reaction have been captured on camera for the first time. To understand the significance: it is these ultrafast movements that underlie numerous chemical and biological processes.

Publication date: August 11, 00:30

The recording was conducted by researchers from the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (USA) using the LCLS X-ray laser. They managed to fix the ultrafast motion of electrons during a chemical reaction, marking the first time events were recorded on attosecond and femtosecond time scales. For this purpose, two synchronized X-ray pulses were used: thus, a slow-motion film was created with ten time markers within the first ten femtoseconds.

Why This Matters

Within the first femtosecond, the researchers registered the Koster-Kronig decay, which had previously existed only in theory. This process is important because the low-energy electrons generated can cause radiation damage to biological structures and DNA chain breaks. Additionally, scientists tracked how the electron hole moves through the molecular structure under the influence of quantum coherence.

'Experimental verification of quantum models opens the way for accurate prediction and possibly control over chemical reactions at the atomic level,' noted Taran Driver, lead researcher at SLAC.

The experiment demonstrates how far the study of electron dynamics has progressed and could impact the development of technologies in materials science and medicine. Understanding mechanisms at the atomic level could help in the creation of new materials with improved properties and in the development of more effective treatment methods, particularly in oncology, where controlling electron processes can reduce damage to healthy cells. The significance of interdisciplinary research combining physics, chemistry, and medicine is also emphasized.

The research is already being hailed as a breakthrough in chemical physics.