Confirming the observation of photoelectron circular dichroism in the photodetachment of chiral anions

Join Yale Chemistry for an Experimental Physical Chemistry Seminar with Mallory Green, Postdoctoral Researcher, Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society. A remote option is available here.

 

Chirality is ubiquitous in nature, and scientists seek to explore this property to better understand life processes and facilitate more efficient chemical processes. Chiroptical studies of molecular chirality in the gas phase are often limited due to weak chiral light-matter interactions. However, a relatively new chiroptical technique, known as photoelectron circular dichroism (PECD), bypasses these weak interactions to enable chiral discrimination measurements with chiral sensitivity that well exceeds conventional techniques such as absorption circular dichroism. This chiroptical effect manifests in the photoemission of electrons from a chiral target, upon irradiation with circularly polarized light. Although there are numerous observations of this effect in the photoionization of neutral chiral molecules, there are minimal known cases of PECD in chiral anions. I will discuss our recent observation of photoelectron circular dichroism in the photodetachment of anions. In this discussion, I will explain the implications of this result for understanding the universal dynamics that govern this chiroptical effect.

 

Faculty Host: Mark Johnson,  Arthur T. Kemp Professor of Chemistry