A possibility of the photo-induced semiconductor-metal transition in liquid selenium

We have performed transient absorption measurements of liquid selenium after the illumination of a pulsed laser to clarify the possibility of the photo-induced semiconductor-metal transition. The intensity of the laser was increased up to 23 mJ/pulse and the temperature of the sample was increased up to 600 °C. By increasing the laser intensity and temperature of the sample, quite a large photo-induced change has been observed, which suggests the semiconductor-metal transition.