Charge-transfer dynamics in one-dimensional C60 chains

Charge transfer in highly-ordered C60 chains grown on a Cu(5 5 3) vicinal surface is studied by means of resonant photoemission. Tuning the light polarization, autoionization of the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) was expected to detect anisotropy in this one-dimensional system. For one monolayer C60 we found no signature of autoionization. This indicates that for an electron which is excited from the C 1s level of C60 to the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO), hybridization leads to delocalization on the femtosecond time-scale and no influence of the light polarization is observed.