Optics-on-a-chip for ultrafast manipulation of 350-MHz hard x-ray pulses.

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are miniature devices integrated into a vast range of industrial and consumer applications. Optical MEMS are developed for dynamic spatiotemporal control in lightwave manipulation and communication as modulators, switches, multiplexers, spectrometer, etc. However, they have not been shown to function similarly in sub-nm wavelength regimes, namely, with hard x-rays, as high-brilliance pulsed x-rays have proven powerful for addressing challenges in time-domain science, from energy conversion to neurobiological control.

Ultrafast photonic micro-systems to manipulate hard X-rays at 300 picoseconds.

Time-resolved and ultrafast hard X-ray imaging, scattering and spectroscopy are powerful tools for elucidating the temporal and spatial evolution of complexity in materials. However, their temporal resolution has been limited by the storage-ring timing patterns and X-ray pulse width at synchrotron sources. Here we demonstrate that dynamic X-ray optics based on micro-electro-mechanical-system resonators can manipulate hard X-ray pulses on time scales down to 300 ps, comparable to the X-ray pulse width from typical synchrotron sources.

Getting to the core of the problem: origin of the luminescence from (Mg,Zn)O heterostructured nanowires.

We have measured the time-resolved, X-ray excited optical luminescence spectra from two types of MgxZn(1-x)O core-shell, heterostructured nanowires: type I, with a small x, wurtzite core, encased in a larger x, wurtzite sheath; and type II, with a wurtzite core (x approximately 0), encased in a rock-salt sheath (x>0.62). By monitoring the X-ray energy dependence of the various luminescence peaks, we have determined the local environment of the sites where these peaks originate.