Hannover 2016 – scientific programme
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SYML: Symposium From First Molecules to Life
SYML 2: Molecules and Ions in Isolation
SYML 2.4: Talk
Wednesday, March 2, 2016, 15:45–16:00, e415
Control of small water clusters — •Helen Bieker1,2, Daniel Horke1,2, Daniel Gusa1, and Jochen Küpper1,2,3 — 1Center for Free-Electron Laser Science, DESY — 2The Hamburg Center for Ultrafast Imaging, University of Hamburg — 3Department of Physics, University of Hamburg
To unravel the microscopic details of intermolecular interactions in water, we prepare controlled samples of size- and isomer-selected water clusters. The spatial separation of neutral molecules can be achieved using inhomogeneous electric fields, allowing us to create pure samples of individual structural isomers or of size-selected clusters and to disperse molecules in a beam according to their quantum states [1].
Here, we aim to develop an understanding of the structures of water clusters containing a few monomer units. We present our first results on the production of size-selected samples using supersonic expansions and subsequent dispersion of the various clusters in strong electric fields, extending previous studies [2]. Future experiments aim at utilizing x-ray and electron diffractive imaging to study the structures and the ultrafast dissociation/fragmentation dynamics of these polymolecular systems.
[1] Y.P. Chang, D. A. Horke, S. Trippel and J. Küpper, Int. Rev. Phys Chem. 34, 557-590 (2015)
[2] R. Moro, R. Rabinovitch, C. Xia, and V.V. Kresin, Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 123401 (2006)