CAREER: Impulsive Molecular Modulation for Generating Broadly Tunable, Tailored Femtosecond Laser Pulses

这个职业建议的动机是建立一个综合的研究和教育计划，学习脉冲分子调制(IMM)的基础科学，以改进超快激光技术，同时培训学生超快光学科学(UOS)的基础。这项拟议工作的目标是开发IMM作为一种方法，创建从200到3000 nm连续可调的定制飞秒光脉冲的单一来源。为了实现这一目标，我们将研究IMM的物理，并将相干激发推向它的基本极限。这项提案中描述的研究将探索IMM的基础科学和局限性。我们还将研究IMM在频率转换过程中产生的用于直接脉冲整形的非线性光学极化率中的非定常瞬变。这项技术将提供多个相位相干、整形、宽可调的飞秒激光脉冲。这种光源的多功能性将允许激光同时控制分子中的核和电子运动，并在大光谱范围内测试相干控制技术。综合教育活动的重点将是为从小学到研究生教育的学生提炼UOS和IMM的核心原则。为了鼓励少数族裔学生参与科学，我将制作光学演示，阐明UOS的核心原理，并培养对光学的好奇心和兴奋感。这些演示将用于招募潜在的少数族裔学生，与CSU和K-12外联的现有少数族裔外联计划合作。本科生工程课程中更严格的光学演示将阐明傅里叶变换理论和线性系统在当前光学研究中的应用。最后，为了改善科罗拉多州的研究生光学培训，我正在开发一个科罗拉多州高等教育机构之间课程交换的共享教育平台。该计划将在教职员工之间分配教学，同时增加对学生的课程可用性，并促进研究成果在机构之间迅速传播到广泛的学生基础。

0348068BartelsThe motivation of this CAREER proposal is to establish an integrated research and educational program that will study the basic science of impulsive molecular modulation (IMM) to improve ultrafast laser technology while training students in the fundamentals of ultrafast optical science (UOS). The goal of the proposed work is to develop IMM as a method of creating a single source of tailored, femtosecond light pulses that are continuously tunable from 200 to 3000 nm. To achieve this goal, we will study the physics of IMM and push the coherence excitation to its fundamental limits. The research described in this proposal will explore the basic science and limitations of IMM. We will also study the non-time-stationary transients in the nonlinear optical susceptibility produced by IMM for direct pulse shaping during frequency conversion. This technology will provide multiple phase-coherent, shaped, broadly tunable fs laser pulses. The versatility of this source will allow simultaneous laser control over nuclear and electronic motion in molecules and the testing of coherent control techniques over a large spectral range. The integrated educational activities will be focused on distilling the core principles of UOS and IMM for students at grade-school through graduate educational levels. To encourage the participation of minority students in science, I will develop optical demonstrations that elucidate the core principles of UOS and develop curiosity and excitement about optics. These demonstrations will be used for recruiting of potential minority students in partnership with existing minority outreach programs at CSU and K-12 outreach. More rigorous optical demonstrations in undergraduate engineering courses will illuminate the use of Fourier transform theory and linear systems to current optics research. Finally, in an effort to improve graduate optics training in Colorado, I am developing a shared educational platform for course exchange between Colorado higher educational institutions. This program will distribute the teaching among faculty members while increasing course availability for students and facilitate rapid dissemination of research discoveries between institutions to a broad base of students.