Attosecond lighthouses may help illuminate the tempestuous sea of electrons
Monday, April 30, 2012 - 10:31
in Physics & Chemistry
Physicists have long chased an elusive goal: the ability to "freeze" and then study the motion of electrons in matter. Such experiments could help confirm theories of electron motion and yield insights into how and why chemical reactions take place. Now a collaboration of scientists from France and Canada has developed an elegant new method to study electrons' fleeting antics using isolated, precisely timed, and incredibly fast pulses of light. The team will describe the technique at the Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics , taking place in San Jose, Calif. May 6-11. (CLEO: 2012)