Complementary ultrafast structural probes of carbonyl photochemistry
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Complementary ultrafast structural probes of carbonyl photochemistry
Wed, 11/03/2026 - 14:00 to 15:00
Location:
Speaker:
Alice Green
Affiliation:
University of Edinburgh
Synopsis:
Modern X-ray free-electron lasers and mega-electron volt (MeV) electron sources have revolutionised the way in which we can study the ultrafast photoinduced dynamics of isolated, gas-phase molecules. These structural imaging studies promise to reveal new information about the driving forces underpinning photochemical reactions.
In this talk, I will discuss a series of recent experiments which have applied complementary experimental techniques to study the ultraviolet photochemistry of small, cyclic carbonyl molecules. These species are of particular interest as they form a significant component of secondary organic aerosols, molecules emitted in the atmosphere in vast quantities from both natural and anthropogenic sources. To fully assess their role in the evolving chemical makeup of the atmosphere, a detailed understanding of their unimolecular photochemistry is crucial. We probe these dynamics using ultrafast X-ray scattering, ultrafast electron diffraction and time-resolved Coulomb explosion imaging. Each of these recently-developed techniques exhibits sensitivity to particular aspects of the complex coupled electronic-nuclear dynamics occurring as photoexcited species transform into photoproducts. Consequently, by unifying the insights from each of these experimental methods, we hope to fundamentally advance our understanding of this atmospherically-relevant photochemistry. I will highlight not only the mechanistic insights gained from these studies, but the technical capabilities and complementarity of each probe technique.
If you are interested in arranging a discussion with the speaker during this visit, please contact Dr Marc Little.
Biography:
Dr Alice Green is a Lecturer in Physical Chemistry/Chemical Physics at the University of Edinburgh, where she leads research in ultrafast molecular photochemistry, with particular interests in Coulomb explosion imaging and novel X-ray free-electron laser probes of electronic and nuclear dynamics following photoexcitation.
Alice completed her MChem in Chemistry at the University of St Andrews, before commencing a DPhil in Physical Chemistry at the University of Oxford. Her DPhil research (supervisor: Prof. Stuart Mackenzie) concerned infrared action spectroscopy of gas-phase metal-ligand clusters as model systems of heterogeneous catalysis. Following a short postdoctoral position and junior research fellowship in Oxford, she moved to the Stanford PULSE Institute in California in October 2021 for a further postdoctoral position, where she began researching ultrafast gas-phase photochemistry, utilising international X-ray free-electron laser facilities. In October 2022, she took up a Marie Curie Global Postdoctoral Fellowship held jointly between the Stanford PULSE Institute and European XFEL, Hamburg. In October 2024, she began her current position at the University of Edinburgh.