A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
The inner-shell ionization and fragmentation of selenophene at 120 eV
Authors: Walmsley, Tiffany; Allum, Felix; Harries, James R.; Kumagai, Yoshiaki; McManus, Joseph W.; Nagaya, Kiyonobu; Britton, Mathew; Brouard, Mark; Bucksbaum, Philip H.; Fushitani, Mizuho; Gabalski, Ian; Gejo, Tatsuo; Hockett, Paul; Howard, Andrew J.; Iwayama, Hiroshi; Kukk, Edwin; Lam, Chow-shing; Minns, Russell S.; Niozu, Akinobu; Nishimuro, Sekito; Niskanen, Johannes; Owada, Shigeki; Razmus, Weronika O.; Rolles, Daniel; Somper, James D.; Ueda, Kiyoshi; Unwin, James; Wada, Shin-ichi; Woodhouse, Joanne L.; Forbes, Ruaridh; Burt, Michael; Warne, Emily M.
Publisher: Springer Nature
Publication year: 2026
Journal: Scientific Reports
eISSN: 2045-2322
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-39246-4
Publication's open availability at the time of reporting: Open Access
Publication channel's open availability : Open Access publication channel
Web address : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-39246-4
The inner-shell ionization of selenophene at 120 eV produces a rich array of fragmentation dynamics, including many originating from Auger-Meitner processes. In this report, three-dimensional velocity-map imaging and covariance analysis were used to identify and characterize over 50 distinct selenophene fragmentation channels. The majority resulted in two or three ‘heavy’ products containing selenium or carbon, many of which had identical mass-to-charge ratios but different chemical compositions due to the degree of hydrogenation and the selenium isotope involved. Covariance analysis was used to isolate these reaction channels and to provide estimates of their relative yields. In combination with prior similar studies on thiophene and furan, the current results indicate that the nature of the heteroatom significantly influences the charge redistribution and bond cleavage dynamics induced by the Auger-Meitner process, and demonstrate the sensitivity of inner-shell ionization dynamics to the molecular and electronic structures of heterocyclic systems.
Funding information in the publication:
This research was supported by funding from the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the UK XFEL hub for Physical Sciences, the University of Oxford, the University of Southampton, the States of Jersey, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada, the US Department of Energy, the US National Science Foundation, the Academy of Finland, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, and the Leverhulme Trust.
