Tracking hole localization in K -shell and core-valence-excited acetylene photoionization via body-frame photoelectron angular distributions

Asymmetry in the molecular-frame photoelectron angular distributions from core-hole- or core-valence-excited polyatomic targets with symmetry-equivalent atoms can provide direct evidence for core-hole localization. Using acetylene as an example, we contrast the small asymmetry that can be seen in direct core-level ionization, due to the competition between two competing pathways to the continuum, with ionization from core-valence-excited HCCH, which offers the prospect of observing markedly greater asymmetry.