Zooming in on atomic movements (IMAGE)
Caption
This illustration of data from experiments with SLAC’s X-ray free-electron laser shows how the atoms of a thermoelectric material called tin selenide moved (red arrows) from their room-temperature positions when exposed to ultrafast laser light. Purple circles represent selenium atoms and green circles are tin atoms. Scientists had thought heat and light would have the same effect, so this result was a surprise. The study demonstrates a new avenue for shaping the structures and related properties of materials with light.
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Yijing Huang/Stanford University
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