Progress and Prospects in Optical Ultrafast Microscopy in the Visible Spectral Region: Transient Absorption and Two-Dimensional Microscopy

Niklas Gross; Christopher T Kuhs; Behnaz Ostovar; Wei-Yi Chiang; Kelly S Wilson; Tanner S Volek; Zachary M Faitz; Claire C Carlin; Jennifer A Dionne; Martin T Zanni; Martin Gruebele; Sean T Roberts; Stephan Link; Christy F Landes

doi:10.1021/acs.jpcc.3c02091

Progress and Prospects in Optical Ultrafast Microscopy in the Visible Spectral Region: Transient Absorption and Two-Dimensional Microscopy

J Phys Chem C Nanomater Interfaces. 2023 Jul 24;127(30):14557-14586. doi: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.3c02091. eCollection 2023 Aug 3.

Authors

Niklas Gross¹, Christopher T Kuhs², Behnaz Ostovar³, Wei-Yi Chiang¹, Kelly S Wilson⁴, Tanner S Volek⁴, Zachary M Faitz⁵, Claire C Carlin⁶, Jennifer A Dionne^{6

7}, Martin T Zanni⁵, Martin Gruebele^{8

9

10}, Sean T Roberts⁴, Stephan Link^{1

3}, Christy F Landes^{1

3

11}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemistry, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77005, United States.
² Army Research Laboratory-South, U.S. Army DEVCOM, Houston, Texas 77005, United States.
³ Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77005, United States.
⁴ Department of Chemistry, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, United States.
⁵ Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, United States.
⁶ Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, United States.
⁷ Department of Radiology, Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford (MIPS), Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California 94305, United States.
⁸ Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States.
⁹ Department of Physics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States.
¹⁰ Center for Biophysics and Quantitative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States.
¹¹ Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77005, United States.

Abstract

Ultrafast optical microscopy, generally employed by incorporating ultrafast laser pulses into microscopes, can provide spatially resolved mechanistic insight into scientific problems ranging from hot carrier dynamics to biological imaging. This Review discusses the progress in different ultrafast microscopy techniques, with a focus on transient absorption and two-dimensional microscopy. We review the underlying principles of these techniques and discuss their respective advantages and applicability to different scientific questions. We also examine in detail how instrument parameters such as sensitivity, laser power, and temporal and spatial resolution must be addressed. Finally, we comment on future developments and emerging opportunities in the field of ultrafast microscopy.

Publication types

Review