Formation of high-aspect-ratio nanocavity in LiF crystal using a femtosecond X-ray free-electron laser pulse
- Sergey S. Makarov
- Vasily V. Zhakhovsky
- Sergey Yu. Grigoryev
- Petr Chuprov
- Tatiana A. Pikuz
- Nail A. Inogamov
- Victor A. Khokhlov
- Yuri V. Petrov
- Evgeniy A. Perov
- Vadim Shepelev
- Takehisa Shobu
- Aki Tominaga
- Ludovic Rapp
- Saulius Juodkazis
- Mikako Makita
- Motoaki Nakatsutsumi
- Thomas R. Preston
- Karen Appel
- Zuzana Konopkova
- Valerio Cerantola
- Erik Brambrink
- Jan-Patrick Schwinkendorf
- István Mohacsi
- Vojtech Vozda
- Vera Hajkova
- Tomas Burian
- Jaromir Chalupsky
- Libor Juha
- Norimasa Ozaki
- Ryosuke Kodama
- Ulf Zastrau
- Andrei V. Rode
- Sergey A. Pikuz
2025-12-17
Recent research and development into the formation of nanoscale channels as a central component of nanofluidic biochip systems revolutionized the biological and chemical fields. Exploration of new pathways to form nanochannels is increasingly necessary to provide a new generation of analytical tools with accurate control of liquid fluid flow, high selectivity and increased mass flow rate. Here, we demonstrate that a single 9-keV pulse from X-ray free-electron-laser can form a nanoscale mm-long cavity in LiF. The laser-generated shock pressure results in channel formation with >1,000 length-to-diameter aspect ratio. The development of void is analyzed via continuum and atomistic simulations revealing a sequence of processes leading to the final long cavity structure. This work presents the study of mm-long nanochannel formation by a single high-brilliance X-ray free-electron laser pulse. With MHz repetition rate X-ray free electron laser opens a new avenue for the development of lab-on-chip applications in any material, including those non-transparent to optical lasers.