arXiv subjects

Zhibin Sun

Publications and source records attributed to Zhibin Sun.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Dichography: Two-frame Ultrafast Imaging from a Single Diffraction Pattern

We experimentally demonstrate that pairs of time-delayed ultrabright and ultrashort X-ray pulses of two different colors, delivered by modern X-ray Free Electron Lasers, can provide two time-delayed snapshots of a sample. We introduce Dichography, a method that algorithmically separates the diffraction signals overlapping on the detector and independently retrieves the two images of the specimen. We employ Dichography to reconstruct two views of individual xenon-doped helium nanodroplets with 20 nm spatial resolution. The consistency of structures observed in both images at delays up to 750 fs provides evidence that, under these illumination conditions, significant structural damage only occurs at longer timescales. We further validate the method by imaging pairs of silver nanoparticles intercepted by the same light pulse. Dichography enables a new class of experiments across physics, chemistry, and materials science, making a significant step toward the original promise of X-ray free-electron lasers to capture ultrafast movies of nanomatter.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

SPRING: an effective and reliable framework for image reconstruction in single-particle Coherent Diffraction Imaging

Coherent Diffraction Imaging (CDI) is an experimental technique to gain images of isolated structures by recording the light scattered off the sample. In principle, the sample density can be recovered from the scattered light field through a straightforward Fourier Transform operation. However, only the amplitude of the field is recorded, while the phase is lost during the measurement process and has to be retrieved by means of suitable, well-established phase retrieval algorithms. In this work, we present SPRING, an analysis framework tailored to X-ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL) single-shot single-particle diffraction data that implements the Memetic Phase Retrieval method to mitigate the shortcomings of conventional algorithms. We benchmark the approach on experimental data acquired in two experimental campaigns at SwissFEL and European XFEL. Imaging results on isolated nanostructures reveal unprecedented stability and resilience of the algorithm's behavior on the input parameters, as well as the capability of identifying the solution in conditions hardly treatable so far with conventional methods. A user-friendly implementation of SPRING is released as open-source software, aiming at being a reference tool for the coherent diffraction imaging community at XFEL and synchrotron facilities.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Coherent all X-ray four wave mixing at core shell resonances

Nonlinear wave mixing in the X-ray range can provide valuable insights into the structural and electron dynamics of atomic and molecular systems on ultrafast time scales, with state- and site-selectivity and atomic resolution. This promising experimental toolbox was so far limited by requiring at least one near-visible laser, thus preventing core-shell two-dimensional X-ray spectroscopy. In this work, we demonstrate the generation of background-free all-X-ray four-wave mixing (XFWM) signals from a dilute gaseous sample (Ne). The measured and simulated two-dimensional spectral maps ($ω_{\text{in}},ω_{\text{out}}$) show multiple contributions involving the coherent response from core electrons. Notably, two-color resonant XFWM signals, essential for generalized multi-color schemes that allow to locally probe the electronic excitation of matter, are observed in neutral Ne. Moreover, stimulated Ne$^+$ emission in each of the propagating X-ray pulses leads to an increase of the temporal coherence in a narrow-bandwidth, which results in the coherent mixing of three X-ray lasers. Preliminary X-ray excitation experiments making use of multi-color time-delayed X-ray pulses demonstrate temporal resolution capability and show a time dependency consistent with a signal dominated by resonant XFWM processes. This first all-X-ray four-wave-mixing approach represents a major breakthrough towards multidimensional X-ray correlation spectroscopy and the general application of nonlinear all-X-ray wave-mixing.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2017

Single-Shot 3D Diffractive Imaging of Core-Shell Nanoparticles with Elemental Specificity

We report 3D coherent diffractive imaging of Au/Pd core-shell nanoparticles with 6 nm resolution on 5-6 femtosecond timescales. We measured single-shot diffraction patterns of core-shell nanoparticles using very intense and short x-ray free electron laser pulses. By taking advantage of the curvature of the Ewald sphere and the symmetry of the nanoparticle, we reconstructed the 3D electron density of 34 core-shell structures from single-shot diffraction patterns. We determined the size of the Au core and the thickness of the Pd shell to be 65.0 +/- 1.0 nm and 4.0 +/- 0.5 nm, respectively, and identified the 3D elemental distribution inside the nanoparticles with an accuracy better than 2%. We anticipate this method can be used for quantitative 3D imaging of symmetrical nanostructures and virus particles.

physics.ins-det↗