Physicists from the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Hamburg University observed how electrons, excited by ultrafast light pulses, danced all at once around the subnanometer. c60 Buckminsterfullerene molecule.
Plasmonic resonancecan lock in light for a short period of time.
Its ability to trap light has been applied in a wide range of areas, from light changes to improving light-sensitive gadgets, to even converting sunlight into electricity.
They have been extensively studied in systems from a few centimeters to just 10 nanometers wide, but this is the first time researchers have been able to break the “nanometer barrier” in the field.
Early studies have shown that when plasmonic resonance unfolds on an incredibly small scale, new phenomena emerge and allow light to be confined and controlled with unprecedented accuracy.
This feature will help you understand exactly how resonances at small scales, a topic of great interest for researchers, play back.
“To better understand plasmonic resonance, we excite electrons around the particles and wait for them to release excess energy by releasing them,” said SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and colleague Dr. Shubhadeep Biswas. I've said that.
“Timing that interval allows you to determine if true resonances have occurred when all electrons move in unison, or if only one or two electrons were affected.”
“But these resonances occur on ultrafast timescales, for example, billions of seconds.”
“The observation of these resonances in real time was out of reach of existing technologies.”
The authors used extreme ultraviolet pulses to trigger and record the behavior of electrons within the soccer ball-shaped Buckminster Flurene molecule, measuring only 0.7 nanometers in diameter.
They accurately timed the process until the moment the electrons were released from the instant light, which excited electrons, ejecting excess energy, allowing the remaining electrons to relax into their normal orbit.
Each cycle lasted between 50-300 attoseconds, and measurements showed that the electrons were operating with strong consistency, like disciplined dancers who played in unison.
“These findings show for the first time that extreme measurements can provide valuable insight into plasmonic resonance at scales smaller than nanometers,” Dr. Biswas said.
This breakthrough allows researchers to evaluate new ranges of ultra-small particles, increasing the efficiency of existing technologies and revealing plasmonic properties leading to new applications.
“The measurements unlock new insights into the interaction of electronic coherence and light confinement at the subnanometer scale,” said Professor Matthias Kling, physicist at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University.
“This work demonstrates the power of extreme technology and provides a new approach to operating electronics in future ultra-high speed electronics that could operate at frequencies up to one million times higher than current technology. It's open.”
“This cutting-edge research paves a new path for the development of ultra-compact, high-performance platforms that can control the interaction of light and matter by leveraging the quantum effects that emerge at the nanoscale.”
Survey results Published in the journal Advances in science.
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Shubhadeep biswas et al. 2025. Correlation-driven attosecond optical radiation delay in plasmonic excitation of C.60 Fullerene. Advances in science 11(7); doi:10.1126/sciadv.ads0494
Source: www.sci.news
