Attosecond electron–spin dynamics in Xe 4d photoionization

The photoionization of xenon atoms in the 70–100 eV range reveals several fascinating physical phenomena such as a giant resonance induced by the dynamic rearrangement of the electron cloud after photon absorption, an anomalous branching ratio between intermediate Xe + states separated by the spin-orbit interaction and multiple Auger decay processes. These phenomena have been studied in the past, using in particular synchrotron radiation, but without access to real-time dynamics. Here, we study the dynamics of Xe 4 d photoionization on its natural time scale combining attosecond interferometry and coincidence spectroscopy. A time-frequency analysis of the involved transitions allows us to identify two interfering ionization mechanisms: the broad giant dipole resonance with a fast decay time less than 50 as, and a narrow resonance at threshold induced by spin-flip transitions, with much longer decay times of several hundred as. Our results provide insight into the complex electron-spin dynamics of photo-induced phenomena. Here the authors report experiment and theory study of the photoionization of xenon inner shell 4d electron using attosecond pulses. They have identified two ionization paths - one corresponding to broad giant dipole resonance with short decay time and the other involving spin-flip transitions.