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Ultrafast physics

Quantum control with a twist

Nature volume 430, pages 624–625 (2004)Cite this article

Laser pulses can be generated such that their shape and state of polarization change on the scale of a few femtoseconds, adding a new twist to the control and manipulation of molecules.

When driving a car, steering is crucial for getting where you want to go. Imagine driving a car with no steering-wheel in Manhattan: you could go to some places, along north–south avenues or east–west streets, but you would be very limited in your choice of destination. Laser scientists faced a similar limitation when trying to drive quantum systems, such as atoms or molecules, into desired states. The linearly polarized laser pulses they used could drive the system along one axis only; full control would require more complex light signals. But a series of advances in ultrafast optics — the latest reported by Suzuki et al.1 and Brixner et al.2 in Physical Review Letters — has now put a steering-wheel in their hands.

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Figure 1: Polarization-shaped pulse, optimized for the ionization of potassium molecules2.

References

  1. Suzuki, T., Minemoto, S., Kanai, T. & Sakai, H. Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 133005 (2004).

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  2. Brixner, T. et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 208301 (2004).

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  5. Oron, D., Dudovich, N. & Silberberg, Y. Phys. Rev. Lett. 90, 213902 (2003).

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  1. Department of Physics of Complex Systems, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100, Israel

    Yaron Silberberg

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  1. Yaron Silberberg
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Silberberg, Y. Quantum control with a twist. Nature 430, 624–625 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/430624a

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