1 research outputs found
Probing chirality with inelastic electron-light scattering
Circular dichroism spectroscopy is an essential technique for understanding
molecular structure and magnetic materials, but spatial resolution is limited
by the wavelength of light, and sensitivity sufficient for single-molecule
spectroscopy is challenging. We demonstrate that electrons can efficiently
measure the interaction between circularly polarized light and chiral materials
with deeply sub-wavelength resolution. By scanning a nanometer-sized focused
electron beam across an optically-excited chiral nanostructure and measuring
the electron energy spectrum at each probe position, we produce a
high-spatial-resolution map of near-field dichroism. This technique offers a
nanoscale view of a fundamental symmetry and could be employed as "photon
staining" to increase biomolecular material contrast in electron microscopy