Dietrich von der Linde
University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany
Date
6 May 2009
Host
Ursula Keller
Title
Watching the Dance of the Atoms in Slow-Motion
Abstract
The changes in the atomic configuration underlying chemical reactions, phase transitions and many other fundamental processes in nature take place on a femtosecond (fs) time scale, that is, roughly speaking 10-14 to 10-13 s (1 fs = 10-15s). Ultrafast lasers and optical spectroscopy provide the capability of temporally resolving these processes but they lack the spatial resolution that is be required to directly track the motion of the atoms. Recently, femtosecond pulses of short wavelength radiation, in particular X-ray pulses, have been developed enabling a combination of femtosecond time resolution with atomic spatial resolution. Thus, the vision of scientists of being able to take snapshots of rapidly changing complex atomic structures appears to be within reach.