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Updated: May 18, 2026

Photoelectron Imaging of Anions Illustrated by 310 Nm Detachment of F−
Published on: July 27, 2018
Imaging polyatomic molecules in three dimensions using molecular frame photoelectron angular distributions
J B Williams1, C S Trevisan, M S Schöffler
1Department of Physics, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama 36849, USA.
Abstract:
We demonstrate a method for determining the full three-dimensional molecular-frame photoelectron angular distribution in polyatomic molecules using methane as a prototype. Simultaneous double Auger decay and subsequent dissociation allow measurement of the initial momentum vectors of the ionic fragments and the photoelectron in coincidence, allowing full orientation by observing a three-ion decay pathway, (H+, H+, CH2(+)). We find the striking result that at low photoelectron energies the molecule is effectively imaged by the focusing of photoelectrons along bond directions.
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