Few-femtosecond time-resolved study of the UV-induced dissociative dynamics of iodomethane.

Ultraviolet (UV) light that penetrates our atmosphere initiates various photochemical and photobiological processes. However, the absence of extremely short UV pulses has so far hindered our ability to fully capture the mechanisms at the very early stages of such processes. This is important because the concerted motion of electrons and nuclei in the first few femtoseconds often determines molecular reactivity.

Capturing electron-driven chiral dynamics in UV-excited molecules.

Chiral molecules, used in applications such as enantioselective photocatalysis, circularly polarized light detection and emission and molecular switches, exist in two geometrical configurations that are non-superimposable mirror images of each other. These so-called (R) and (S) enantiomers exhibit different physical and chemical properties when interacting with other chiral entities. Attosecond technology might enable influence over such interactions, given that it can probe and even direct electron motion within molecules on the intrinsic electronic timescale and thereby control reactivity.