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Updated: Aug 26, 2025

Photoelectron Imaging of Anions Illustrated by 310 Nm Detachment of F−
Published on: July 27, 2018
Imaging Photoelectron Circular Dichroism in the Detachment of Mass-Selected Chiral Anions
Jenny Triptow1, André Fielicke1, Gerard Meijer1
1Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Faradayweg 4-6, 14195, Berlin, Germany.
Abstract:
Photoelectron Circular Dichroism (PECD) is a forward-backward asymmetry in the photoemission from a non-racemic sample induced by circularly polarized light. PECD spectroscopy has potential analytical advantages for chiral discrimination over other chiroptical methods due to its increased sensitivity to the chiral potential of the molecule. The use of anions for PECD spectroscopy allows for mass-selectivity and provides a path to simple experimental schemes that employ table-top light sources. Evidence of PECD for anions is limited, and insight into the forces that govern PECD electron dynamics in photodetachment is absent. Here, we demonstrate a PECD effect in the photodetachment of mass-selected deprotonated 1-indanol anions. By utilizing velocity map imaging photoelectron spectroscopy with a tunable light source, we determine the energy-resolved PECD over a wide range of photon energies. The observed PECD reaches up to 11 %, similar to what has been measured for neutral species.
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