U.S.-Bulgarian Cooperative Research in Ultrashort-Pulse Laser Optics

9520874 Murnane这笔赠款支持华盛顿州立大学的玛格丽特·M.Murnane博士和Henry C.Kapteyn博士以及索非亚大学物理系的Ivan P.Christov教授之间的美国-保加利亚研究项目“超短脉冲激光光学合作研究”。该项目将对超短光脉冲产生和测量的新技术进行协调的实验和理论工作。该项目将结合华盛顿州立大学团队的实验专业知识和索非亚团队的理论能力，以解决超快光学中的重要和重大问题。研究人员将进行：(1)超短脉冲锁模钛宝石激光器的实验和理论研究，以探索锁模的基本极限，并研究锁模机制的物理学，以期设计更有效和更好的飞秒激光器；(2)研究材料电子非线性响应的基本极限，使用前所未有的短脉冲光脉冲，以期在许多科学领域影响用于超快研究的高效频率转换技术的设计，到目前为止，这些领域在实验上是无法实现的；以及(3)使用新的推测方法在光谱的紫外线和X射线区域产生1-10个飞秒光脉冲，这将在超快化学和材料动力学的研究中使用。这一物理学项目通过使保加利亚和美国的顶尖专家能够将互补的人才结合在一起，并在彼此感兴趣和有能力的领域汇集资源，实现了促进科学知识的计划目标。***

9520874 Murnane This grant supports a US-Bulgaria Research Project on "Cooperative Research in Ultrashort-Pulse Laser Optics" between Drs. Margaret M. Murnane and Henry C. Kapteyn of Washington State University, and Prof. Ivan P. Christov of the Department of Physics of Sofia University. This project will perform coordinated experimental and theoretical work on novel techniques in ultrashort light pulse generation and measurement. The project will combine the experimental expertise of the group at Washington State University with the theoretical capabilities of the group at Sofia, to address important and significant problems in ultrafast optics. The investigators will perform: (1) experimental and theoretical studies on ultrashort-pulse modelocked Ti:sapphire lasers, to investigate the fundamental limits of modelocking, and study the physics of the modelocking mechanisms with a view to design more efficient and better femtosecond lasers; (2) studies of fundamental limits on the electronic nonlinear response of materials, using light pulses of unprecedented short duration, with a view toward impacting the design of efficient frequency conversion techniques for ultrafast studies in many areas of science, heretofore experimentally inaccessible; and (3) the generation of 1-10 femtosecond optical pulses in the ultraviolet and x-ray region of the spectrum using novel and speculative methods, sources which would have uses in the study of ultrafast chemical and material dynamics. This project in physics fulfills the program objective of advancing scientific knowledge by enabling leading experts in Bulgaria and the United States to combine complementary talents and pool resources in areas of strong mutual interest and competence. ***