TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kunnus, Kristjan
A1  - Josefsson, I.
A1  - Schreck, Simon Frederik
A1  - Quevedo, W.
A1  - Miedema, P. S.
A1  - Techert, S.
A1  - de Groot, F. M. F.
A1  - Föhlisch, Alexander
A1  - Odelius, M.
A1  - Wernet, Ph.
T1  - Quantifying covalent interactions with resonant inelastic soft X-ray scattering
BT  - case study of Ni2+ aqua complex
JF  - Chemical physics letters
N2  - We analyze the effects of covalent interactions in Ni 2p3d resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) spectra from aqueous Ni2+ ions and find that the relative RIXS intensities of ligand-to-metal charge-transfer final states with respect to the ligand-field final states reflect the covalent mixing between Ni 3d and water orbitals. Specifically, the experimental intensity ratio at the Ni L-3-edge allows to determine that the Ni 3d orbitals have on average 5.5% of water character. We propose that 2p3d RIXS at the Ni L-3-edge can be utilized to quantify covalency in Ni complexes without the use of external references or simulations.
KW  - Transition-metal ion
KW  - Aqueous solution
KW  - Covalent interaction
KW  - Resonant inelastic X-ray scattering
KW  - Ligand-field state
KW  - Charge-transfer state
Y1  - 2016
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cplett.2016.12.046
SN  - 0009-2614
SN  - 1873-4448
VL  - 669
SP  - 196
EP  - 201
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Amsterdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kunnus, Kristjan
A1  - Josefsson, I.
A1  - Rajkovic, Ivan
A1  - Schreck, Simon
A1  - Quevedo, Wilson
A1  - Beye, Martin
A1  - Weniger, C.
A1  - Gruebel, S.
A1  - Scholz, M.
A1  - Nordlund, D.
A1  - Zhang, W.
A1  - Hartsock, R. W.
A1  - Gaffney, K. J.
A1  - Schlotter, W. F.
A1  - Turner, J. J.
A1  - Kennedy, B.
A1  - Hennies, F.
A1  - de Groot, F. M. F.
A1  - Techert, S.
A1  - Odelius, Michael
A1  - Wernet, Ph.
A1  - Föhlisch, Alexander
T1  - Identification of the dominant photochemical pathways and mechanistic insights to the ultrafast ligand exchange of Fe(CO)(5) to Fe(CO)(4)EtOH
JF  - Structural dynamics
N2  - We utilized femtosecond time-resolved resonant inelastic X-ray scattering and ab initio theory to study the transient electronic structure and the photoinduced molecular dynamics of a model metal carbonyl photocatalyst Fe(CO)(5) in ethanol solution. We propose mechanistic explanation for the parallel ultrafast intra-molecular spin crossover and ligation of the Fe(CO)(4) which are observed following a charge transfer photoexcitation of Fe(CO)(5) as reported in our previous study [ Wernet et al., Nature 520, 78 (2015)]. We find that branching of the reaction pathway likely happens in the (1)A(1) state of Fe(CO)(4). A sub-picosecond time constant of the spin crossover from B-1(2) to B-3(2) is rationalized by the proposed B-1(2) -> (1)A(1) -> B-3(2) mechanism. Ultrafast ligation of the B-1(2) Fe(CO)(4) state is significantly faster than the spin-forbidden and diffusion limited ligation process occurring from the B-3(2) Fe(CO)(4) ground state that has been observed in the previous studies. We propose that the ultrafast ligation occurs via B-1(2) -> (1)A(1) -> (1)A'Fe(CO)(4)EtOH pathway and the time scale of the (1)A(1) Fe(CO)(4) state ligation is governed by the solute-solvent collision frequency. Our study emphasizes the importance of understanding the interaction of molecular excited states with the surrounding environment to explain the relaxation pathways of photoexcited metal carbonyls in solution. (C) 2016 Author(s).
Y1  - 2016
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4941602
SN  - 2329-7778
VL  - 3
PB  - American Institute of Physics
CY  - Washington
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kunnus, Kristjan
A1  - Josefsson, Ida
A1  - Schreck, Simon
A1  - Quevedo, Wilson
A1  - Miedema, Piter S.
A1  - Techert, Simone
A1  - de Groot, Frank M. F.
A1  - Odelius, Michael
A1  - Wernet, Philippe
A1  - Föhlisch, Alexander
T1  - From Ligand Fields to Molecular Orbitals: Probing the Local Valence Electronic Structure of Ni2+ in Aqueous Solution with Resonant Inelastic X-ray Scattering
JF  - The journal of physical chemistry : B, Condensed matter, materials, surfaces, interfaces & biophysical chemistry
N2  - Bonding of the Ni2+(aq) complex is investigated with an unprecedented combination of resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) measurements and ab initio calculations at the Ni L absorption edge. The spectra directly reflect the relative energies of the ligand-field and charge-transfer valence-excited states. They give element-specific access with atomic resolution to the ground-state electronic structure of the complex and allow quantification of ligand-field strength and 3d-3d electron correlation interactions in the Ni2+(aq) complex. The experimentally determined ligand-field strength is 10Dq = 1.1 eV. This and the Racah parameters characterizing 3d-3d Coulomb interactions B = 0.13 eV and C = 0.42 eV as readily derived from the measured energies match very well with the results from UV-vis spectroscopy. Our results demonstrate how L-edge RIXS can be used to complement existing spectroscopic tools for the investigation of bonding in 3d transition-metal coordination compounds in solution. The ab initio RASPT2 calculation is successfully used to simulate the L-edge RIXS spectra.
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1021/jp4100813
SN  - 1520-6106
VL  - 117
IS  - 51
SP  - 16512
EP  - 16521
PB  - American Chemical Society
CY  - Washington
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Wernet, Philippe
A1  - Kunnus, Kristjan
A1  - Josefsson, Ida
A1  - Rajkovic, Ivan
A1  - Quevedo, Wilson
A1  - Beye, Martin
A1  - Schreck, Simon
A1  - Gruebel, S.
A1  - Scholz, Mirko
A1  - Nordlund, Dennis
A1  - Zhang, Wenkai
A1  - Hartsock, Robert W.
A1  - Schlotter, William F.
A1  - Turner, Joshua J.
A1  - Kennedy, Brian
A1  - Hennies, Franz
A1  - de Groot, Frank M. F.
A1  - Gaffney, Kelly J.
A1  - Techert, Simone
A1  - Odelius, Michael
A1  - Föhlisch, Alexander
T1  - Orbital-specific mapping of the ligand exchange dynamics of Fe(CO)(5) in solution
JF  - Nature : the international weekly journal of science
N2  - Transition-metal complexes have long attracted interest for fundamental chemical reactivity studies and possible use in solar energy conversion(1,2). Electronic excitation, ligand loss from the metal centre, or a combination of both, creates changes in charge and spin density at the metal site(3-11) that need to be controlled to optimize complexes for photocatalytic hydrogen production(8) and selective carbon-hydrogen bond activation(9-11). An understanding at the molecular level of how transition-metal complexes catalyse reactions, and in particular of the role of the short-lived and reactive intermediate states involved, will be critical for such optimization. However, suitable methods for detailed characterization of electronic excited states have been lacking. Here we show, with the use of X-ray laser-based femtosecond-resolution spectroscopy and advanced quantum chemical theory to probe the reaction dynamics of the benchmark transition-metal complex Fe(CO)(5) in solution, that the photo-induced removal of CO generates the 16-electron Fe(CO)(4) species, a homogeneous catalyst(12,13) with an electron deficiency at the Fe centre(14,15), in a hitherto unreported excited singlet state that either converts to the triplet ground state or combines with a CO or solvent molecule to regenerate a penta-coordinated Fe species on a sub-picosecond timescale. This finding, which resolves the debate about the relative importance of different spin channels in the photochemistry of Fe(CO)(5) (refs 4, 16-20), was made possible by the ability of femtosecond X-ray spectroscopy to probe frontier-orbital interactions with atom specificity. We expect the method to be broadly applicable in the chemical sciences, and to complement approaches that probe structural dynamics in ultrafast processes.
Y1  - 2015
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1038/nature14296
SN  - 0028-0836
SN  - 1476-4687
VL  - 520
IS  - 7545
SP  - 78
EP  - 81
PB  - Nature Publ. Group
CY  - London
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Mitzner, Rolf
A1  - Rehanek, Jens
A1  - Kern, Jan
A1  - Gul, Sheraz
A1  - Hattne, Johan
A1  - Taguchi, Taketo
A1  - Alonso-Mori, Roberto
A1  - Tran, Rosalie
A1  - Weniger, Christian
A1  - Schröder, Henning
A1  - Quevedo, Wilson
A1  - Laksmono, Hartawan
A1  - Sierra, Raymond G.
A1  - Han, Guangye
A1  - Lassalle-Kaiser, Benedikt
A1  - Koroidov, Sergey
A1  - Kubicek, Katharina
A1  - Schreck, Simon
A1  - Kunnus, Kristjan
A1  - Brzhezinskaya, Maria
A1  - Firsov, Alexander
A1  - Minitti, Michael P.
A1  - Turner, Joshua J.
A1  - Möller, Stefan
A1  - Sauter, Nicholas K.
A1  - Bogan, Michael J.
A1  - Nordlund, Dennis
A1  - Schlotter, William F.
A1  - Messinger, Johannes
A1  - Borovik, Andrew S.
A1  - Techert, Simone
A1  - de Groot, Frank M. F.
A1  - Föhlisch, Alexander
A1  - Erko, Alexei
A1  - Bergmann, Uwe
A1  - Yachandra, Vittal K.
A1  - Wernet, Philippe
A1  - Yano, Junko
T1  - L-edge x-ray absorption spectroscopy of dilute systems relevant to metalloproteins using an X-ray free-electron laser
JF  - The journal of physical chemistry letters
N2  - L-edge spectroscopy of 3d transition metals provides important electronic structure information and has been used in many fields. However, the use of this method for studying dilute aqueous systems, such as metalloenzymes, has not been prevalent because of severe radiation damage and the lack of suitable detection systems. Here we present spectra from a dilute Mn aqueous solution using a high-transmission zone-plate spectrometer at the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS). The spectrometer has been optimized for discriminating the Mn L-edge signal from the overwhelming 0 K-edge background that arises from water and protein itself, and the ultrashort LCLS X-ray pulses can outrun X-ray induced damage. We show that the deviations of the partial-fluorescence yield-detected spectra from the true absorption can be well modeled using the state-dependence of the fluorescence yield, and discuss implications for the application of our concept to biological samples.
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1021/jz401837f
SN  - 1948-7185
VL  - 4
IS  - 21
SP  - 3641
EP  - 3647
PB  - American Chemical Society
CY  - Washington
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Schreck, Simon
A1  - Pietzsch, Annette
A1  - Kennedy, Brian
A1  - Sathe, Conny
A1  - Miedema, Piter S.
A1  - Techert, Simone
A1  - Strocov, Vladimir N.
A1  - Schmitt, Thorsten
A1  - Hennies, Franz
A1  - Rubensson, Jan-Erik
A1  - Föhlisch, Alexander
T1  - Ground state potential energy surfaces around selected atoms from resonant inelastic x-ray scattering
JF  - Scientific reports
N2  - Thermally driven chemistry as well as materials’ functionality are determined by the potential energy surface of a systems electronic ground state. This makes the potential energy surface a central and powerful concept in physics, chemistry and materials science. However, direct experimental access to the potential energy surface locally around atomic centers and to its long-range structure are lacking. Here we demonstrate how sub-natural linewidth resonant inelastic soft x-ray scattering at vibrational resolution is utilized to determine ground state potential energy surfaces locally and detect long-range changes of the potentials that are driven by local modifications. We show how the general concept is applicable not only to small isolated molecules such as O2 but also to strongly interacting systems such as the hydrogen bond network in liquid water. The weak perturbation to the potential energy surface through hydrogen bonding is observed as a trend towards softening of the ground state potential around the coordinating atom. The instrumental developments in high resolution resonant inelastic soft x-ray scattering are currently accelerating and will enable broad application of the presented approach. With this multidimensional potential energy surfaces that characterize collective phenomena such as (bio)molecular function or high-temperature superconductivity will become accessible in near future.
Y1  - 2016
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1038/srep20054
SN  - 2045-2322
VL  - 6
PB  - Nature Publ. Group
CY  - London
ER  -