Ultrafast electron diffraction instrument for gas and condensed matter samples

Authors

Yibo Wang, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Sajib Kumar Saha, University of Nebraska–LincolnFollow
Tianlin Li, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Yanwei Xiong, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Kyle Wilkin, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Anil Adhikari, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Michael Loes, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Jehad Abourahma, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Xia Hong, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
S. Adenwalla, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Alexander Sinitskii, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Martin Centurion, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow

Date of this Version

5-23-2023

Citation

Rev. Sci. Instrum. 94, 053001 (2023); doi: 10.1063/5.0146577

Comments

Used by permission.

Abstract

We report the modification of a gas phase ultrafast electron diffraction (UED) instrument that enables experiments with both gas and condensed matter targets, where a time-resolved experiment with sub-picosecond resolution is demonstrated with solid state samples. The instrument relies on a hybrid DC-RF acceleration structure to deliver femtosecond electron pulses on the target, which is synchronized with femtosecond laser pulses. The laser pulses and electron pulses are used to excite the sample and to probe the structural dynamics, respectively. The new system is added with capabilities to perform transmission UED on thin solid samples. It allows for cooling samples to cryogenic temperatures and to carry out time-resolved measurements. We tested the cooling capability by recording diffraction patterns of temperature dependent charge density waves in 1T-TaS₂. The time-resolved capability is experimentally verified by capturing the dynamics in photoexcited single-crystal gold.