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When the length of a light pulse approaches that of just a few wavelengths, the difference in the phase of its field relative to its overall shape, or envelope becomes important in how the pulse interacts with matter. Accurate measurements of this carrier-envelope phase previously required averaging over many separate pulses. Now it can be measured in one shot.
The extreme fields generated when a high-intensity laser or relativistic electron passes through a plasma offer the potential to accelerate particles over shorter distances than is possible with conventional accelerators. A new study suggests that driving a plasma with protons rather than electrons could be the key to generating TeV electron beams by this process.
The ability to coherently manipulate single electrons and photons is vital for quantum information processing. Experiments now demonstrate optical initialization, manipulation and probing of a single quantum dot on femtosecond timescales, revealing signatures of interaction effects, optical gain and the ability to change the number of quanta in a light pulse by one.
Topological insulators are band insulators in which spin–orbit coupling takes the role of the applied magnetic field in the integer quantum Hall effect. Theory now predicts that dislocations in such systems can give rise to one-dimensional topologically protected states, resembling helical modes at the edge of a two-dimensional quantum spin Hall insulator.
The description of valence electrons in terms of non-local states that extend throughout a material presents problems for describing their contribution to ferroelectric polarization behaviour, which is inherently local. A new first-principles approach that treats electric displacement as a fundamental variable could provide a solution.
A systematic demonstration of the generation and focusing of laser-driven high-order harmonics to a near-diffraction-limited spot suggests that scaling this approach to ever higher intensities could be easier than first thought.
The force between molecules deposited on a surface during the growth of an organic film is usually attractive. But for certain metal phthalocyanine molecules, this force can change with temperature from attractive to repulsive, resulting in unusual ordering behaviour.
