Femtosecond polarization shaping of free-electron laser pulses

We demonstrate the generation of extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) free-electron laser (FEL) pulses with time-dependent polarization. To achieve polarization modulation on a femtosecond timescale, we combine two mutually delayed counterrotating circularly polarized subpulses from two cross-polarized undulators. The polarization profile of the pulses is probed by angle-resolved photoemission and above-threshold ionization of helium; the results agree with solutions of the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. The stability limit of the scheme is mainly set by electron-beam energy fluctuations, however, at a level that will not compromise experiments in the XUV. Our results demonstrate the potential to improve the resolution and element selectivity of methods based on polarization shaping and may lead to the development of new coherent control schemes for probing and manipulating core electrons in matter

STUDY OF ELECTRONIC STATES OF THIN METAL FILMS ON HEAVY METAL SURFACES

V magistrskem delu smo se osredoto£ili na pripravo in karakterizacijo heterogenih ve£plastnih tankih filmov sestavljenih iz kovin ter teºkih kovin. Za izdelavo vzorcev smo izbrali dve feromagnetni kovini, Fe in Gd, ter eno divalentno kovino iz redkih zemelj, Yb. Tanke filme smo nana²ali na kristalno povr²ino volframa W(110) ter molibdena Mo(110). V primeru Fe na povr²ini W(110) in Mo(110) ter Yb na pov²ini Mo(110) smo uspe²no dolo£ili pogoje, potrebne za nana²anje atomsko enakomernih filmov. S pomo £jo kotno odvisne fotoemisije smo preu£evali kvantna stanja v Fe in Yb filmih na Mo in W kristalih. Celotno eksperimentalno delo je potekalo na ºarkovnih linijah VUV-Photoemission in²tituta (ISM-CNR) ter BaDElPh pri sinhrotronu Elettra v Trstu

Regioselective Synthesis of 5- and 3-Hydroxy-<i>N</i>-Aryl-1<i>H</i>-Pyrazole-4-Carboxylates and Their Evaluation as Inhibitors of <i>Plasmodium falciparum</i> Dihydroorotate Dehydrogenase

In silico evaluation of various regioisomeric 5- and 3-hydroxy-substituted alkyl 1-aryl-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylates and their acyclic precursors yielded promising results with respect to their binding in the active site of dihydroorotate dehydrogenase of Plasmodium falciparum (PfDHODH). Consequently, four ethyl 1-aryl-5-hydroxy-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylates and their 3-hydroxy regioisomers were prepared by two-step syntheses via enaminone-type reagents or key intermediates. The synthesis of 5-hydroxy-1H-pyrazoles was carried out using the literature protocol comprising acid-catalyzed transamination of diethyl [(dimethylamino)methylene]malonate with arylhydrazines followed by base-catalyzed cyclization of the intermediate hydrazones. For the synthesis of isomeric methyl 1-aryl-3-hydroxy-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylates, a novel two-step synthesis was developed. It comprises acylation of hydrazines with methyl malonyl chloride followed by cyclization of the hydrazines with tert-butoxy-bis(dimethylamino)methane. Testing the pyrazole derivatives for the inhibition of PfDHODH showed that 1-(naphthalene-2-yl)-5-hydroxy-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylate and 1-(naphthalene-2-yl)-, 1-(2,4,6-trichlorophenyl)-, and 1-[4-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl]-3-hydroxy-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylates (~30% inhibition) were slightly more potent than a known inhibitor, diethyl α-{[(1H-indazol-5-yl)amino]methylidene}malonate (19% inhibition)

High-resolution ptychographic imaging at a seeded free-electron laser source using OAM beams

International audienceElectromagnetic waves possessing orbital angular momentum (OAM) are powerful tools for applications in optical communications, quantum technologies, and optical tweezers. Recently, they have attracted growing interest since they can be harnessed to detect peculiar helical dichroic effects in chiral molecular media and in magnetic nanostructures. In this work, we perform single-shot per position ptychography on a nanostructured object at a seeded free-electron laser, using extreme ultraviolet OAM beams of different topological charge orders ℓ generated with spiral zone plates. By controlling ℓ, we demonstrate how the structural features of OAM beam profiles determine an improvement of about 30% in image resolution with respect to conventional Gaussian beam illumination. This result extends the capabilities of coherent diffraction imaging techniques, and paves the way for achieving time-resolved high-resolution (below 100 nm) microscopy on large area samples