Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 12, 2026

Measurement of Ultrafast Vibrational Coherences in Polyatomic Radical Cations with Strong-Field Adiabatic Ionization
Published on: August 6, 2018
Femtosecond clocking of the chemical bond
Abstract:
When a chemical bond is broken in a direct dissociation reaction, the process is so rapid that it has generally been considered instantaneous and thus unmeasurable. However, the bond does persist for times on the order of 10(-13) seconds after the photon has been absorbed. Femtosecond (10(-15) second) laser techniques can be used to directly clock this process, which describes the dynamics of the chemical bond. The time required to break the chemical bond in an elementary reaction has been measured and the characteristic repulsion length for the potential governing fragment separation has been obtained.
More Related Videos
08:44Measurements of Long-range Electronic Correlations During Femtosecond Diffraction Experiments Performed on Nanocrystals of Buckminsterfullerene
Published on: August 22, 2017
09:49An Experimental Protocol for Femtosecond NIR/UV - XUV Pump-Probe Experiments with Free-Electron Lasers
Published on: October 23, 2018
Related Concept Videos
Chemical Bonds
Atoms participate in a chemical bond formation to acquire a completed valence-shell electron configuration similar to that of the noble gas nearest to it in atomic number. Ionic, covalent, and metallic bonds are some of the important types of chemical bonds. Bond energy and bond length determine the strength of a chemical bond.
Types of Chemical Bonds
An ionic bond is formed due to electrostatic attraction between cations and anions. Often, the ions are formed by the transfer of electrons from...
IR Spectroscopy: Hooke's Law Approximation of Molecular Vibration
According to Hooke's law, the vibrational frequency is directly proportional to the...
¹H NMR of Conformationally Flexible Molecules: Temporal Resolution
Introduction to Chemical Bonds
The electrons of the outermost energy level determine the energetic stability of the atom and its tendency to form chemical bonds with other atoms. The innermost electron shell has a maximum capacity of two electrons, but the next two electron shells can each have a maximum of eight electrons. This is known as the octet rule, which states that, with the exception of the innermost shell, atoms are most stable energetically when they have eight electrons in their valence shell, the...
Bond Dissociation Energy and Activation Energy
Spin–Spin Coupling Constant: Overview
Qualitatively, any spin plus-half nucleus polarizes the spins of its electrons to the minus-half state. Consequently, the paired electron in the hydrogen–carbon bond must have a...