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Carbon–carbon single-bond rotation is a fundamental process in organic molecules. Here the authors use time-resolved X-ray liquidography to follow this motion in a haloalkane and its photodissociation product on an ultrafast timescale with atomic resolution.

Localized chemical events such as the breakage of a bond between a protein and a ligand may trigger a global protein conformational change. Here, the authors use an X-ray free-electron laser to track the motion of myoglobin in response to photoinduced ligand release, and observe a picosecond proteinquake.

Time-resolved wide-angle X-ray scattering (TR-WAXS) using synchrotron radiation can be used to observe dynamic protein structural changes with nanosecond time resolution in solution, complementing time-resolved optical spectroscopy and Laue crystallography methods.

Here, the authors present a time-resolved method that overcomes inefficient sample use termed Serial X-ray liquidography, which enables microgram-scale analysis of diverse biological reactions yielding structural and kinetic insights.

Here, the authors provide mechanistic insight into light-induced dimerization of a Light-Oxygen-Voltage (LOV) ___domain using time-resolved X-ray liquidography, furthering our understanding LOV ___domain photoactivation and protein-protein interaction-driven oligomerization.

Time-resolved femtosecond crystallography (TR-SFX) is a powerful technique to monitor structural transitions in protein crystals at the atomic level, but its use in non-protein synthetic materials remains limited. Now TR-SFX has been used to visualize the structural dynamics of metal–organic frameworks, showing the potential of this tool to study the dynamic motion of crystalline porous materials.

The use of mega-electronvolt ultrafast electron diffraction combined with resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization yields data that can reveal the formation and subsequent structural relaxation of a molecular ion on an ultrafast timescale.

Femtosecond time-resolved X-ray solution scattering (fs-TRXSS) measurements provide information on the structural dynamics of proteins in solution. Here, the authors present a structure refinement method for the analysis of fs-TRXSS data and use it to characterise the ultrafast structural changes of homodimeric haemoglobin.

Tracking the flow of charge in reacting molecules may provide key insight into reaction mechanisms, but is particularly challenging in liquid solutions. Here the authors, by analyzing the isotropic and anisotropic scattering signal in femtosecond time resolved X-ray liquidography, determine the charge localization and structural changes during photodissociation of the triiodide anion I₃^-

Femtosecond X-ray liquidography is used to track the vibrational wavepacket trajectories of gold atoms in solution, enabling time-resolved observations of the emergence of vibrations and the evolution of the formation of covalent bonds.

The roaming reaction is a common process in the gas phase and in solution, but observation of the involved atomic movements has been challenging. The authors, using femtosecond time-resolved X-ray liquidography, resolve the detailed structural dynamics at the onset of a roaming reaction in the photoinduced isomerization of BiI3 in solution.

The donor–acceptor (D-A) conjugation has been adopted for two-dimensional (2D) covalent organic frameworks (COFs) for efficient generation of free charge carriers. Here, the authors investigate the dynamics of photogenerated charge carriers in 2D D-A COFs by combining femtosecond optical spectroscopy and non-adiabatic molecular dynamics simulation.

Time-resolved X-ray crystallography on photoactive yellow protein shows the existence of a short-lived, highly distorted intermediate whose reaction trajectory bifurcates along ‘bicycle-pedal’ and ‘hula-twist’ pathways. The bifurcating reaction pathways can be controlled by weakening the hydrogen bond between the chromophore and an adjacent residue, which switches off the bicycle-pedal pathway.

Time-resolved X-ray solution scattering is used to visualize and probe the dynamics of the individual steps in the formation of a gold trimer complex, including covalent bond formation, with a time resolution of ∼500 femtoseconds.

Centrifugal casting is widely used to fabricate functional materials that exhibit built-in spatial gradients due to the variation in material density. Kim et al.use this method to prepare colloidal quantum dot films for the first time, based on which photodetectors with gradient bandgap are built.

Covalent organic frameworks can utilize π-stacking interactions for the formation of ordered, layered frameworks. Here, the authors report an ordered framework with tailored π-interactions resulting in periodic ordering in three dimensions, which leads to enhanced stability and electronic properties.

Interactions between reactive excited states of molecular photocatalysts and surrounding solvent can dictate reaction pathways, but are not readily accessible to conventional spectroscopic methods. Here the authors use diffuse X-ray scattering and theory to study the atomistic solvation dynamics of a photoexcited di-iridium complex in acetonitrile.

Singlet fission excited-state relaxation, as observed in covalently linked dimers, could allow energy-conversion efficiencies in photovoltaic devices beyond the Shockley–Queisser limit. Here, the authors study the effect of the molecular configuration of two covalently ortho-linked pyrene dimers on singlet fission dynamics using steady-state and time-resolved spectroscopies.

A long-sought three-dimensional graphene-like carbon structure that resembles periodically networked carbon nanotubes is now readily available through lanthanum-catalysed carbon synthesis using a zeolite template.