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Gaida JH, Lourenço-Martins H, Yalunin SV, Feist A, Sivis M, Hohage T, García de Abajo FJ, Ropers C. Lorentz microscopy of optical fields. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6545. [PMID: 37848420 PMCID: PMC10582189 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42054-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023] Open
Abstract
In electron microscopy, detailed insights into nanoscale optical properties of materials are gained by spontaneous inelastic scattering leading to electron-energy loss and cathodoluminescence. Stimulated scattering in the presence of external sample excitation allows for mode- and polarization-selective photon-induced near-field electron microscopy (PINEM). This process imprints a spatial phase profile inherited from the optical fields onto the wave function of the probing electrons. Here, we introduce Lorentz-PINEM for the full-field, non-invasive imaging of complex optical near fields at high spatial resolution. We use energy-filtered defocus phase-contrast imaging and iterative phase retrieval to reconstruct the phase distribution of interfering surface-bound modes on a plasmonic nanotip. Our approach is universally applicable to retrieve the spatially varying phase of nanoscale fields and topological modes.
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Affiliation(s)
- John H Gaida
- Department of Ultrafast Dynamics, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- 4th Physical Institute - Solids and Nanostructures, University of Göttingen, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Hugo Lourenço-Martins
- Department of Ultrafast Dynamics, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- 4th Physical Institute - Solids and Nanostructures, University of Göttingen, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Sergey V Yalunin
- Department of Ultrafast Dynamics, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- 4th Physical Institute - Solids and Nanostructures, University of Göttingen, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Armin Feist
- Department of Ultrafast Dynamics, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- 4th Physical Institute - Solids and Nanostructures, University of Göttingen, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Murat Sivis
- Department of Ultrafast Dynamics, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- 4th Physical Institute - Solids and Nanostructures, University of Göttingen, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Thorsten Hohage
- Institute of Numerical and Applied Mathematics, University of Göttingen, 37083, Göttingen, Germany
| | - F Javier García de Abajo
- ICFO-Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, 08860, Castelldefels (Barcelona), Spain
- ICREA-Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats, 08010, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Claus Ropers
- Department of Ultrafast Dynamics, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, 37077, Göttingen, Germany.
- 4th Physical Institute - Solids and Nanostructures, University of Göttingen, 37077, Göttingen, Germany.
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Büttner F, Pfau B, Böttcher M, Schneider M, Mercurio G, Günther CM, Hessing P, Klose C, Wittmann A, Gerlinger K, Kern LM, Strüber C, von Korff Schmising C, Fuchs J, Engel D, Churikova A, Huang S, Suzuki D, Lemesh I, Huang M, Caretta L, Weder D, Gaida JH, Möller M, Harvey TR, Zayko S, Bagschik K, Carley R, Mercadier L, Schlappa J, Yaroslavtsev A, Le Guyarder L, Gerasimova N, Scherz A, Deiter C, Gort R, Hickin D, Zhu J, Turcato M, Lomidze D, Erdinger F, Castoldi A, Maffessanti S, Porro M, Samartsev A, Sinova J, Ropers C, Mentink JH, Dupé B, Beach GSD, Eisebitt S. Observation of fluctuation-mediated picosecond nucleation of a topological phase. Nat Mater 2021; 20:30-37. [PMID: 33020615 DOI: 10.1038/s41563-020-00807-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Accepted: 08/20/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Topological states of matter exhibit fascinating physics combined with an intrinsic stability. A key challenge is the fast creation of topological phases, which requires massive reorientation of charge or spin degrees of freedom. Here we report the picosecond emergence of an extended topological phase that comprises many magnetic skyrmions. The nucleation of this phase, followed in real time via single-shot soft X-ray scattering after infrared laser excitation, is mediated by a transient topological fluctuation state. This state is enabled by the presence of a time-reversal symmetry-breaking perpendicular magnetic field and exists for less than 300 ps. Atomistic simulations indicate that the fluctuation state largely reduces the topological energy barrier and thereby enables the observed rapid and homogeneous nucleation of the skyrmion phase. These observations provide fundamental insights into the nature of topological phase transitions, and suggest a path towards ultrafast topological switching in a wide variety of materials through intermediate fluctuating states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Büttner
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Helmholtz-Zentrum für Materialien und Energie GmbH, Berlin, Germany.
| | | | - Marie Böttcher
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | | | | | - Christian M Günther
- Zentraleinrichtung Elektronenmikroskopie (ZELMI), Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Institut für Optik und Atomare Physik, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | | | - Angela Wittmann
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Alexandra Churikova
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Siying Huang
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Daniel Suzuki
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Ivan Lemesh
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Mantao Huang
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Lucas Caretta
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | - John H Gaida
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Marcel Möller
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Tyler R Harvey
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Sergey Zayko
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Kai Bagschik
- Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY), Hamburg, Germany
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Jun Zhu
- European XFEL, Schenefeld, Germany
| | | | | | - Florian Erdinger
- Institute of Computer Engineering, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Andrea Castoldi
- Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informazione e Bioingegneria, Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy
- Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Milano, Milano, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Jairo Sinova
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Claus Ropers
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Johan H Mentink
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Bertrand Dupé
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, Mainz, Germany
- Nanomat/Q-mat/CESAM, Université de Liège, Belgium and Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique (FNRS), Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Geoffrey S D Beach
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Stefan Eisebitt
- Max-Born-Institut, Berlin, Germany
- Institut für Optik und Atomare Physik, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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Perri A, Gaida JH, Farina A, Preda F, Viola D, Ballottari M, Hauer J, De Silvestri S, D’Andrea C, Cerullo G, Polli D. Time- and frequency-resolved fluorescence with a single TCSPC detector via a Fourier-transform approach. Opt Express 2018; 26:2270-2279. [PMID: 29401767 PMCID: PMC6186413 DOI: 10.1364/oe.26.002270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
We introduce a broadband single-pixel spectro-temporal fluorescence detector, combining time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC) with Fourier transform (FT) spectroscopy. A birefringent common-path interferometer (CPI) generates two time-delayed replicas of the sample's fluorescence. Via FT of their interference signal at the detector, we obtain a two-dimensional map of the fluorescence as a function of detection wavelength and emission time, with high temporal and spectral resolution. Our instrument is remarkably simple, as it only requires the addition of a CPI to a standard single-pixel TCSPC system, and it shows a readily adjustable spectral resolution with inherently broad bandwidth coverage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Perri
- IFN-CNR, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - John H. Gaida
- IFN-CNR, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133, Milano, Italy
- 4th Physical Institute – Solids and Nanostructures, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Andrea Farina
- IFN-CNR, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Preda
- IFN-CNR, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Daniele Viola
- IFN-CNR, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Matteo Ballottari
- Universita degli Studi di Verona, Department of Biotechnology, 37134 Verona, Italy
| | - Jürgen Hauer
- Technische Universität München, Dynamische Spektroskopien, Fakultät für Chemie, Lichtenbergstr. 4, 85748 Garching, Germany
- Photonics Institute, TU Wien, Gusshausstrasse 27, 1040 Vienna, Austria
| | - Sandro De Silvestri
- IFN-CNR, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Cosimo D’Andrea
- IFN-CNR, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133, Milano, Italy
- Center for Nano Science and Technology at Polimi, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Milano 20133, Italy
| | - Giulio Cerullo
- IFN-CNR, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Dario Polli
- IFN-CNR, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133, Milano, Italy
- Center for Nano Science and Technology at Polimi, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Milano 20133, Italy
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