Thomas Weinacht
Stony Brook University
Department of Physics
Monday, March 14, 2011
4:30 p.m.
Cardwell 102
Ultrafast Quantum Camera: Capturing and Controlling Molecular Dynamics with Ultrafast Laser Pulses
Strong field ultrafast laser pulses can be used to capture and control the motion of molecules on their natural timescales. I will discuss how 'pump-probe' measurements can be used to construct molecular movies, illustrating how the phase of a wave function can influence the dissociation of a molecule and how polyatomic molecules of biological interest (such as the DNA bases Adenine and Cytosine) can undergo rapid internal conversion to avoid damage after the absorption of UV light.