Math-Sci Seminar

Speaker: Prof. Herschel Rabitz, Charles Phelps Smyth Professor of Chemistry, 
	   Princeton University, USA

Title:  Controlling Quantum Dynamics Phenomena with Shaped Laser Pulses 
        Acting as Photonic Reagents
 ATTENTION TO UNUSUAL PLACE AND DATE

Date: Mon 27 Nov, 2006
Time: 16:45
Place: Science Building, Room Z24


Abstract:
Since the development of the laser some 40 years ago, a longstanding
dream has been to utilize this special source of radiation to
manipulate dynamical events at the atomic and molecular scales.
Hints that this goal may become a reality began to emerge in the
1990's, due to a confluence of concepts and technologies involving
(a) control theory, (b) ultrafast laser sources, (c) laser pulse
shaping techniques, and (d) fast pattern recognition algorithms.
These concepts and tools have resulted in a high speed instrument
configuration capable of adaptively changing the driving laser pulse
shapes, approaching the performance of thousands of independent
experiments in a matter of minutes.  Each particular shaped laser
pulse acts as a “Photonic Reagent” much as an ordinary reagent would
at the molecular scale.  Although a Photonic Reagent has a fleeting
existence, it can leave a permanent impact.  Current demonstrations
have ranged from manipulating simple systems (atoms) out to the
highly complex (biomolecules), and applications to quantum
information sciences are being pursued.  In all cases, the
fundamental concept is one of adaptively manipulating quantum
systems.  The principles involved will be discussed, along with the
presentation of the state of the field.

Please visit http://home.ku.edu.tr/~sci-math for a schedule of
upcoming Science -Math seminars at Koc University.