{
  "abstract": "A single low-keV X-ray photon can strip a molecule of more than ten electrons. Deep inner-shell ionization of heavy atoms, including those incorporated into radiosensitizers in emerging cancer therapies, initiates an Auger cascade that rapidly builds up high charge and can drive extensive fragmentation. How this charge accumulates, not the total energy deposited alone, governs the molecular response to irradiation. Yet cascade-driven charge buildup is neglected in current radiation-damage and dosimetry models because complex Auger cascades remain poorly understood, and tracing how this initially local atomic process develops into an extended molecular response remains challenging. We demonstrate that the total charge produced by an Auger cascade is already encoded in the first Auger decay step, which can be described using existing atomic data. State-selective Auger-electron–ion coincidence measurements on atomic xenon resolve this earliest branching and reveal markedly different final charge distributions, with mean charges ranging from +4 to +11 depending on the first Auger decay channel. In molecules, the later cascade is strongly modified by the surrounding valence-electron environment. Measurements on molecular iodine show substantially enhanced charge buildup, which is captured by an “ideal electron-reservoir model” representing how sustained access to valence electrons increases both the final charge and electron emission. Together, these results connect the intrinsically atomic first Auger decay step to the final molecular charge buildup and provide a route to include cascade-driven charging in predictive descriptions of X-ray damage, from structural biology to emerging Auger therapies.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Laboratoire de Chimie Physique-Matière et Rayonnement",
    "L’Orme des Merisiers",
    "Rostov State Transport University",
    "Department of Physics and Astronomy",
    "University of Turku",
    "Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, W. Ostwaldi 1, Tartu, Estonia, EE-50411"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 13,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "O. Travnikova"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "A. P. Chaynikov"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "H. Hartikainen"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "K.–I. Pusa"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "M. Berholts"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "D. Céolin"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "T. Marchenko"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "I. Ismail"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "A.G. Kochur"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "A.I. Dudenko"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "M. Simon"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "E. Kukk"
    },
    {
      "name": "Oksana TRAVNIKOVA",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-9504-3692"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2ew09jy6rtx8e.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.26434/chemrxiv.15010098/v1",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "2ew09jy6rtx8e",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15010098/v1",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "journal",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "3107|Atomic and Molecular Physics"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7220904517",
  "pdf_url": "https://chemrxiv.org/doi/pdf/10.26434/chemrxiv.15010098/v1",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-08",
  "publisher": "American Chemical Society (ACS)",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2ew09jy6rtx8e.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:22Z",
      "native_id": "10.26434/chemrxiv.15010098",
      "source": "chemrxiv",
      "url": "https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15010098/v2"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "openalex:3107|Atomic and Molecular Physics",
      "subfield": "amo"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Atomic memory in molecular charge evolution in deep inner-shell Auger cascades.",
  "title_text": "Atomic memory in molecular charge evolution in deep inner-shell Auger cascades.",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:17:24Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2ew09jy6rtx8e",
  "venue": "ChemRxiv",
  "versions": []
}