For his pioneering work in the field of Attosecond Physics, the General Assembly of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow) has elected Professor Ferenc Krausz, Director at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching and Chair of Experimental Physics at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU Munich), as a foreign member. Founded in 1724 under Tsar Peter the Great in St. Petersburg, the academy is now the most important research organization of the Russian Federation. Since its founding the academy has given this distinction to very outstanding scientists, in recent times for example to Professor Wolfgang Ketterle (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston, USA) and Professor Ahmed Zewail (California Institute of Technology, Santa Barbara, USA). “I feel very honoured by this distinction and regard it as a mission to further strengthen the very fruitful scientific cooperation between our countries”, Professor Krausz comments.

An international team of scientists successfully concentrated the energy of infrared laser pulses using a nano funnel enabling them to generate extreme ultraviolet light pulses, which repeated 75 million times per second. (Nature Photonics: 16 October 2011)

Physicists of the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics have generated for the first time “white” light pulses and they are able to control their field on a time scale shorter than an optical oscillation. These new tools hold promise for unprecedented control of the motion of electrons in the microcosm.

Professor Matthias Kling, leader of the “Attosecond Imaging” Research Group at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, Garching (near Munich), has received this year’s Röntgen Prize from the Justus-Liebig-University of Gießen, Germany, in recognition of his contributions to the development of “attosecond nanophotonics”. This award, sponsored by several private companies from the City of Gießen, is primarily devoted to young scientists who have done excellent work in fundamental radiation physics or fundamental radiation biology.

An international team of researchers succeeded at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics to control and monitor strongly accelerated electrons from nano-spheres with extremely short and intense laser pulses. (Nature Physics: 24 April 2011)

Physicists of the Laboratory of Attosecond Physics at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics succeeded in the first real-time observation of laser produced electron plasma waves and electron bunches accelerated by them. The physicists describe their results in the scientific journal Nature Physics (Nature Physics: 13 March 2011)