Altering the Course of Quantum Dynamics Phenomena

普林斯顿大学的Herschel Rabitz得到了理论和计算化学计划的支持，他的研究涉及与量子现象控制相关的新理论概念的发展，以及从控制过程中提取机械和其他物理信息。该项目有四个组成部分：(A)设计和分析分子控制，(B)探索特殊控制目标，(C)开发闭环算法以指导实验室学习控制，(D)开发闭环算法以从实验室控制实验中提取分子相互作用。组件(A)和(B)旨在通过理论和计算分析获得对量子现象控制的物理见解。(C)和(D)项的重点是通过引入新算法来加强控制量子过程的新兴闭环实验室能力。所有提出的研究类别之间存在密切联系，其中一些设计和分析研究作为闭环算法开发的先驱。虽然这项研究本质上是理论和计算的，但它的目的是对新兴的实验室控制实验产生直接影响。因此，建立了几个合作实验室项目，目的是将提议的概念和算法转移到实验室，以便迅速实施。总的来说，这项研究旨在提高操纵分子过程和更一般量子现象的能力，同时从这些努力中提取尽可能多的物理信息。自从激光发明以来，化学家们一直梦想着有选择地激发分子内的区域，从而引起受控的化学反应发生。然而，很久以前人们就认识到，能量在分子中的重新分配是如此之快，以至于不可能把足够的能量集中在一个选定的键上而使它断裂。随着激光脉冲调制技术的出现和量子控制理论的应用，现在看来，激光选择化学可能成为现实，最终实际应用。

Herschel Rabitz of Princeton University is supported by the Theoretical and Computational Chemistry Program for research that deals with development of new theoretical concepts relevant to the control of quantum phenomena and the extraction of mechanistic and other physical information from the control process. The project has four components: (A) design and analysis of molecular controls, (B) exploration of special control objectives, (C) development of closed loop algorithms to guide laboratory learning control, and (D) development of closed loop algorithms for extracting molecular interactions from laboratory control experiments. Components (A) and (B) aim to attain physical insights into the control of quantum phenomena through theoretical and computational analysis. The emphasis in items (C) and (D) is on bolstering the emerging closed loop laboratory capabilities for controlling quantum processes by the introduction of new algorithms. Close connections exist among all of the proposed research categories, with some of the design and analysis studies serving as forerunners to the closed loop algorithm development. Although this research is theoretical and computational in nature, it aims for direct impact on emerging laboratory control experiments. Several collaborative laboratory ventures have therefore been established, with the objective of transferring the proposed concepts and algorithms into the laboratory for rapid implementation. Collectively, the research aims to advance the capabilities to manipulate molecular processes and more general quantum phenomena while simultaneously extracting as much physical information as possible from the efforts.Since the invention of laser, chemists have dreamed of selectively exciting regions within a molecule and thus causing a controlled chemical reaction to occur. Long ago it was realized, however, that energy redistributes in molecules so rapidly that it is it not possible to concentrate enough energy in a selected bond to cause it to break. With the advent of laser pulse modulation techniques and the application of quantum control theory, it now appears that laser selective chemistry could potentially become a reality with ultimately practical applications.