Single-shot mega-electronvolt ultrafast electron diffraction for structure dynamic studies of warm dense matter

M Z Mo; X Shen; Z Chen; R K Li; M Dunning; K Sokolowski-Tinten; Q Zheng; S P Weathersby; A H Reid; R Coffee; I Makasyuk; S Edstrom; D McCormick; K Jobe; C Hast; S H Glenzer; X Wang

doi:10.1063/1.4960070

Single-shot mega-electronvolt ultrafast electron diffraction for structure dynamic studies of warm dense matter

Rev Sci Instrum. 2016 Nov;87(11):11D810. doi: 10.1063/1.4960070.

Authors

M Z Mo¹, X Shen¹, Z Chen¹, R K Li¹, M Dunning¹, K Sokolowski-Tinten², Q Zheng¹, S P Weathersby¹, A H Reid¹, R Coffee¹, I Makasyuk¹, S Edstrom¹, D McCormick¹, K Jobe¹, C Hast¹, S H Glenzer¹, X Wang¹

Affiliations

¹ SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA.
² Faculty of Physics and Centre for Nanointegration Duisburg-Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, Lotharstrasse 1, D-47048 Duisburg, Germany.

PMID: 27910490
DOI: 10.1063/1.4960070

Abstract

We have developed a single-shot mega-electronvolt ultrafast-electron-diffraction system to measure the structural dynamics of warm dense matter. The electron probe in this system is featured by a kinetic energy of 3.2 MeV and a total charge of 20 fC, with the FWHM pulse duration and spot size at sample of 350 fs and 120 μm respectively. We demonstrate its unique capability by visualizing the atomic structural changes of warm dense gold formed from a laser-excited 35-nm freestanding single-crystal gold foil. The temporal evolution of the Bragg peak intensity and of the liquid signal during solid-liquid phase transition are quantitatively determined. This experimental capability opens up an exciting opportunity to unravel the atomic dynamics of structural phase transitions in warm dense matter regime.