QUANTUM-ENHANCED FREE-ELECTRON SPECTROMICROSCOPY

Ultrafast electron microscopy relies on the spatial, spectral, and temporal manipulation of free electrons with nm/meV/fs precision to map the structural dynamics as well as the vibrational and electronic ground and excited states of nanomaterials.

With QUEFES I will introduce a conceptually disruptive approach to capitalize on the quantum nature of free electrons and their interactions with matter and radiation fields aiming to obtain previously inaccessible information on the atomic-scale dynamics of such materials, to reveal hidden properties of the quantum vacuum, and to control the many-body state of quantum matter.I will address five challenges of major scientific relevance: (i) the spatiotemporal control over the density matrix of free electrons by interaction with suitably designed optical fields to overcome the current limits of space/time/energy resolution in time-resolved electron spectromicroscopy; (ii) a disruptive approach to map the nanoscale quantum fluctuations and the out-of-equilibrium state associated with optical near fields in vacuum and polaritonic excitations in nanomaterials; (iii) a Fourier-transform-inspired method to image the spatiotemporal evolution of atomic structures, charge carriers, and dynamical screening; (iv) the use of free electrons to flexibly read and write the many-body quantum state of trapped Rydberg atoms and quantum gases; and (v) the realization of all-electron pump-probe spectroscopy combined with the formation of dynamically screened multiple free-electron bound states for lossless charge transport in a semiconductor.I will pursue these research frontiers by relying on the strong interdisciplinary theoretical background of my group at the intersection between electron-light-matter interactions and nanophotonics, introducing a change of paradigm in the use of free electrons to break the current limits of spectromicroscopy and having the potential for revolutionizing our ability to image and manipulate the nanoworld.