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arXiv · 2005.12008

Attosecond electron-spin dynamics in Xe 4d photoionization

Shiyang Zhong·Jimmy Vinbladh·David Busto·Richard J. Squibb·Marcus Isinger·Lana Neoričić·Hugo Laurell·Robin Weissenbilder·Cord L. Arnold·Raimund Feifel·Jan Marcus Dahlström·Göran Wendin·Mathieu Gisselbrecht·Eva Lindroth·Anne L'Huillier
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Abstract

The photoionization of xenon atoms in the 70-100 eV range reveals several fascinating physical phenomena such as a giant resonance induced by the dynamic rearrangement of the electron cloud after photon absorption, an anomalous branching ratio between intermediate Xe$^+$ states separated by the spin-orbit interaction and multiple Auger decay processes. These phenomena have been studied in the past, using in particular synchrotron radiation, but without access to real-time dynamics. Here, we study the dynamics of Xe 4d photoionization on its natural time scale combining attosecond interferometry and coincidence spectroscopy. A time-frequency analysis of the involved transitions allows us to identify two interfering ionization mechanisms: the broad giant dipole resonance with a fast decay time less than 50 as and a narrow resonance at threshold induced by spin-flip transitions, with much longer decay times of several hundred as. Our results provide new insight into the complex electron-spin dynamics of photo-induced phenomena.

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Shiyang Zhong, Jimmy Vinbladh, David Busto, Richard J. Squibb, Marcus Isinger, Lana Neoričić, Hugo Laurell, Robin Weissenbilder, Cord L. Arnold, Raimund Feifel, Jan Marcus Dahlström, Göran Wendin, Mathieu Gisselbrecht, Eva Lindroth, Anne L'Huillier. 2020-05-25. Attosecond electron-spin dynamics in Xe 4d photoionization. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-18847-1

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