Prof. Jens Biegert, ICFO - The Institute of Photonics Sciences, Barcelona, Spain

Leuchs-Russell Auditorium, A.1..500, Staudtstr. 2
Location details


Abstract:
Since the invention of the laser, 60 years ago, scientists have attempted to create an X-ray laser since coherent X-rays would have many applications across diverse areas such as medicine, chemistry or material science. During the last years, we have learned how to use light with such precision as to control the dynamic evolution of nature at the quantum level. Shaping quantum wave packets and controlling their time evolution has allowed to make tabletop sources of coherent x-rays and electron wavepackets. Along the way, we have also been able to generate the shortest strobes of x-ray light and single electron sources, fast enough to directly capture the fastest attosecond electronic and nuclear dynamics in materials. I will show first results in which we are able to see the entire quantum dynamic response of matter when interacting with light in a material. These new capabilities hold tremendous promise for many disparate fields in science and for applications.