Attosecond Explained

attosecond
Symbol:as
Standard:SI
Quantity:time
Units1:SI units

An attosecond (abbreviated as as) is a unit of time in the International System of Units (SI) equal to 10−18 or 1⁄1 000 000 000 000 000 000 (one quintillion) of a second.[1] An attosecond is to a second as a second is to about 31.71 billion years.[2] The attosecond is a tiny unit but it has various potential applications: it can observe oscillating molecules, the chemical bonds formed by atoms in chemical reactions, and other extremely tiny and extremely fast things.

Common measurements

Historical development

In 2001, Ferenc Krausz and his team at the Technical University of Vienna fired an ultrashort wavelength (7 femtoseconds) red laser pulse into a stream of neon atoms, where the stripped electrons were carried by the pulse and almost immediately re-eject into the neon nucleus.[13]

While capturing the attosecond pulse, the physicists also demonstrated its utility. They aimed attosecond and longer-wavelength red pulses at a type of krypton atom simultaneously: first, the electrons were knocked off; then, the red light pulse hit the electrons; finally, the energy was tested. Judging from the difference in the timing of these two pulses, the scientists obtained a very precise measurement of how long it took the electron to decay (how many attoseconds). Never before have scientists used such a short time scale to study the energy of electrons.[14]

Applications

Need for more precise units

The crystal lattice vibrates and molecules rotate on a scale of picoseconds. The creation and breaking of chemical bonds and molecular vibration happen in femtoseconds. Observing the motion of electrons happens on the attosecond scale.[15]

The number of electrons in an atom and their configuration define an element. Because attosecond pulses are faster than the motion of electrons in atoms and molecules, attosecond provides a new tool for controlling and measuring quantum states of matter.[16] These pulses have been used to explore the detailed physics of atoms and molecules and have potential applications in fields ranging from electronics to medicine.[17]

Directly observing the wave oscillations of light

Using a method called attosecond streaking, people can see the electrical components of EM waves. Scientists start with a gas of neon atoms and ionize them with a single ultrashort burst of UV radiation measured in attoseconds. The electric field of the infrared can then strongly influence the motion of the electrons. The electrons will be forced up and down as the field oscillates. Depending on when the electron is released, this process will emit different final energies. The final measurement of the electron's energy, as a function of the relative delay between the two pulses, clearly shows the traces of the electric field of the attosecond pulse.[18]

Short pulses of light

The 2023 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Pierre Agostini, Ferenc Krausz, and Anne L'Huillier for demonstrating a way to create "almost unimaginably" short pulses of light, measured in attoseconds. These pulses can be used to capture and study rapid processes inside atoms, such as the behavior of electrons.[19] [20]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2019-04-07 . attosecond - Memidex dictionary/thesaurus . 2023-10-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190407151606/http://www.memidex.com/attosecond . 7 April 2019 .
  2. Web site: 2007-11-11 . Exploring "Attosecond" Time - Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences (SIMS) . 2023-10-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20071111131259/http://steacie.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/personal/corkum/atto5_e.html . 11 November 2007 .
  3. Grundmann . Sven . Trabert . Daniel . Fehre . Kilian . Strenger . Nico . Pier . Andreas . Kaiser . Leon . Kircher . Max . Weller . Miriam . Eckart . Sebastian . Schmidt . Lothar Ph. H. . Trinter . Florian . Jahnke . Till . Schöffler . Markus S. . Dörner . Reinhard . 2020-10-16 . Zeptosecond birth time delay in molecular photoionization . Science . en . 370 . 6514 . 339–341 . 10.1126/science.abb9318 . 33060359 . 2010.08298 . 2020Sci...370..339G . 222412229 . 0036-8075.
  4. Web site: CODATA Value: atomic unit of time . 2023-10-24 . physics.nist.gov.
  5. Web site: Optica Publishing Group . 2023-10-24 . opg.optica.org.
  6. Kim . H. Y. . Garg . M. . Mandal . S. . Seiffert . L. . Fennel . T. . Goulielmakis . E. . January 2023 . Attosecond field emission . Nature . en . 613 . 7945 . 662–666 . 10.1038/s41586-022-05577-1 . 36697865 . 1476-4687. 9876796 .
  7. Web site: 2023-02-17 . Attosecond electron pulses are claimed as shortest ever . 2023-02-17 . Physics World . en-GB.
  8. Li . Jie . Ren . Xiaoming . Yin . Yanchun . Zhao . Kun . Chew . Andrew . Cheng . Yan . Cunningham . Eric . Wang . Yang . Hu . Shuyuan . Wu . Yi . Chini . Michael . Chang . Zenghu . 2017-08-04 . 53-attosecond X-ray pulses reach the carbon K-edge . Nature Communications . en . 8 . 1 . 186 . 10.1038/s41467-017-00321-0 . 28775272 . 5543167 . 2017NatCo...8..186L . 2041-1723.
  9. Web site: Watching quantum mechanics in action: Researchers create world record laser pulse . 2023-10-24 . ScienceDaily . en.
  10. News: 2006-03-04 . Fastest view of molecular motion . en-GB . 2023-10-24.
  11. Web site: 2016-05-11 . Electron timed hopping between atoms New Scientist . 2023-10-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160511205529/https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn7700-electron-timed-hopping-between-atoms/ . 11 May 2016 .
  12. Föhlisch . A. . Feulner . P. . Hennies . F. . Fink . A. . Menzel . D. . Sanchez-Portal . D. . Echenique . P. M. . Wurth . W. . 2005-07-01 . Direct observation of electron dynamics in the attosecond domain . Nature . 436 . 7049 . 373–376 . 10.1038/nature03833 . 16034414 . 2005Natur.436..373F . 4411563 . 0028-0836.
  13. Web site: Attosecond Physics becomes a Milestone . 2023-10-24 . www.mpq.mpg.de . en.
  14. The birth of attosecond physics and its coming of age . 10.1088/0031-8949/91/6/063011 . 2016 . Krausz . Ferenc . Physica Scripta . 91 . 6 . 2016PhyS...91f3011K . 124590030 .
  15. Web site: The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1999 . 2023-10-24 . NobelPrize.org . en-US.
  16. Web site: Canada . National Research Council . 2017-06-15 . Importance of attosecond research . 2023-11-04 . www.canada.ca.
  17. Web site: The Nobel Prize in Physics 2023 . 2023-11-05 . NobelPrize.org . en-US.
  18. Goulielmakis . E. . Uiberacker . M. . Kienberger . R. . Baltuska . A. . Yakovlev . V. . Scrinzi . A. . Westerwalbesloh . Th. . Kleineberg . U. . Heinzmann . U. . Drescher . M. . Krausz . F. . 2004-08-27 . Direct Measurement of Light Waves . Science . en . 305 . 5688 . 1267–1269 . 10.1126/science.1100866 . 15333834 . 2004Sci...305.1267G . 38772425 . 0036-8075.
  19. News: Gill . Victoria . 3 October 2023 . Nobel Prize for 'attosecond physicists' Agostini, L'Huillier and Krausz . BBC. 8 May 2024.
  20. News: Bubola. Emma. Miller. Katrina . 3 October 2023 . Nobel Prize in Physics Awarded to 3 Scientists for Illuminating How Electrons Move. The New York Times. subscription. 8 May 2024.

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