Attosecond 'lighthouses': A simple method for generating isolated ultrashort pulses
Friday, November 30, 2012 - 10:40
in Physics & Chemistry
Electrons move extremely rapidly inside atoms and molecules (the order of magnitude is the attosecond, i.e. 10-18 of a second). One way to observe these phenomena is to use isolated ultrashort pulses of light, which are successfully characterized at this time scale. As demonstrated by researchers at CEA-IRAMIS and the Applied Optics Laboratory (LOA, CNRS/ENSTA-Paris Tech/École Polytechnique), there is a particularly well-adapted light source that can be used to carry out such research into how matter behaves. The results are published in Nature Photonics on December 1, 2012.