{"title":"Structural dynamics in quantum solids","authors":"Majed Chergui","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01282-3","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01282-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Structural dynamics in semi-quantum and quantum solids (Ne, H<sub>2</sub> and D<sub>2</sub>) is reported, and compared to results in classical solids such as Ar. The structural dynamics is driven by excitation of the lowest Rydberg state of the NO impurity. The resulting charge redistribution induces a local radial deformation of the medium (‘bubble’ formation) around the impurity. The steady-state spectroscopic signatures of this process are presented and analysed in the configuration coordinate model and harmonic approximation. Intermolecular potentials describing the impurity-medium interaction are obtained. The dynamics of ‘bubble’ formation and the ensuing medium response are probed in real-time by femtosecond pump-probe spectroscopy. In the very soft H<sub>2</sub> and D<sub>2</sub> environments, ‘bubble’ formation is a one-way process without recurrence of the cage motion and is complete in ∼1–2 ps. In the case of solid Ne, the dynamics are characterized by an initial expansion of the matrix cage around the impurity, followed by a low frequency recurrence. The results in solid Ne are complemented by preliminary molecular dynamics simulations. Overall the trend observed is that the expansion becomes slower in the sequence Ar–Ne–hydrogens, which is counterintuitive. This is discussed in terms of the quantum (delocalised) character of the lighter media, which introduces an additional microscopic friction. These results establish our experimental procedure based on the use of low-<em>n</em> Rydberg states as a novel method for probing structural and electronic solvation dynamics in non-polar media.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 10","pages":"Pages 1453-1467"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01282-3","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86866918","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Femtosecond magneto-optical processes in metals","authors":"Jean-Yves Bigot","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01284-7","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01284-7","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Ultrafast magneto-optical techniques, using femtosecond laser pulses, are a powerful tool for investigating the magnetization dynamics in metallic materials. We review some recent developments in this field, which allow progress in the understanding of the fundamental mechanisms that govern the magnetization changes in ferromagnetic structures. Some fundamental aspects of the magneto-optical response in the frequency and time domain are first considered. Then, we analyze the dynamics of the charges and spins following the optical excitation of quasiparticles in different ferromagnetic thin films. This dynamics is discussed by considering the processes that are involved in the ultrafast magneto-optical response.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 10","pages":"Pages 1483-1504"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01284-7","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"94080673","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Maximum pull out force on DNA hybrids","authors":"Pierre-Gilles de Gennes","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01287-2","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01287-2","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>We discuss theoretically the force <em>F</em> between two colloidal particles, each of them carrying one single strand DNA. The two strands are complementary only on a finite sequence of (ℓ) consecutive base pairs. We define an adjustment length <em>ϰ</em><sup>−1</sup> (a few base pairs); in the adjustment regions near both ends of the paired region, the tension is still mainly on one single strand. But in the central part (for ℓ><em>ϰ</em><sup>−1</sup>) the two backbones are equally loaded. This leads to a rupture force <em>F</em><sub><em>c</em></sub> increasing linearly with ℓ for ℓ<em>ϰ</em><1, and saturating for ℓ<em>ϰ</em>>1.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 10","pages":"Pages 1505-1508"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01287-2","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89776750","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Günter Steinmeyer, Lukas Gallmann, Florian W. Helbing, Ursula Keller
{"title":"New directions in sub-10-fs optical pulse generation","authors":"Günter Steinmeyer, Lukas Gallmann, Florian W. Helbing, Ursula Keller","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01276-8","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01276-8","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Sub-10-fs pulse generation has reached a maturity and robustness that gave rise to a rapid increase of new ultrafast applications. Some of these novel applications rely on the octave-spanning spectral width, the coherence properties, or the extremely high peak intensity of femtosecond lasers, which sets them apart from the traditional use of femtosecond lasers in ultrafast spectroscopy. In this review, we concentrate on the sub-10-fs regime and first discuss the state of the art in ultrashort pulse generation. We then report on ultrabroadband wavelength conversion schemes and dispersion control by chirped mirrors. We also review advances in pulse characterization methods, with which we can measure pulse properties with much higher accuracy than simple autocorrelation methods and which support even a bandwidth in the single-cycle regime. With the recent demonstrations of pulses with a duration of merely two optical cycles, a regime is entered where the relative phase between the carrier and the envelope of the pulse starts to play a role. We discuss methods to measure and control the carrier–envelope phase and point out applications in frequency metrology. A wealth of further novel directions and developments in femtosecond research is reviewed in this article.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 10","pages":"Pages 1389-1406"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01276-8","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"109542109","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Benoit Deveaud, Francesco Quochi, Michele Saba, Cristiano Ciuti, Jean-Louis Staehli
{"title":"Femtosecond dynamics and non-linearities of exciton–photon coupling in semiconductor microstructures","authors":"Benoit Deveaud, Francesco Quochi, Michele Saba, Cristiano Ciuti, Jean-Louis Staehli","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01281-1","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01281-1","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>We have studied the femtosecond dynamics of excitonic resonances in quantum well microcavities under strong excitation. Very strong non-linearities are observed, which bear clear resemblance to the non-linearities of an atomic two-level system. The fact that the excitonic system undergoes Rabi flopping and AC Stark splitting is clearly evidenced in a number of cases. Excitation induced dephasing shows an effect much stronger than the light dressing and prevents the observation of the Rabi flopping only when exciting in the continuum. Most of the experimental findings are well reproduced by a dynamical solution of the Maxwell–Bloch equations for an ensemble of two-level systems. This allows in particular understanding of the occurrence of strong coherent gain in microcavities. An exhaustive description of the experiments is given within the framework of semiconductor Maxwell–Bloch optical equations at the Hartree–Fock level.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 10","pages":"Pages 1439-1451"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01281-1","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"100024120","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Quantum vacuum fluctuations","authors":"Serge Reynaud , Astrid Lambrecht , Cyriaque Genet , Marc-Thierry Jaekel","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01270-7","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01270-7","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The existence of irreducible field fluctuations in vacuum is an important prediction of quantum theory. These fluctuations have many observable consequences, like the Casimir effect, which is now measured with good accuracy and agreement with theory, provided that the latter accounts for differences between real experiments and the ideal situation considered by Casimir. But the vacuum energy density calculated by adding field mode energies is much larger than the density observed around us through gravitational phenomena. This ‘vacuum catastrophe’ is one of the unsolved problems at the interface between quantum theory on one hand, inertial and gravitational phenomena on the other hand. It is however possible to put properly formulated questions in the vicinity of this paradox. These questions are directly connected to observable effects bearing upon the principle of relativity of motion in quantum vacuum.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 9","pages":"Pages 1287-1298"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01270-7","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76256212","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ch. Salomon , N. Dimarcq , M. Abgrall , A. Clairon , P. Laurent , P. Lemonde , G. Santarelli , P. Uhrich , L.G. Bernier , G. Busca , A. Jornod , P. Thomann , E. Samain , P. Wolf , F. Gonzalez , Ph. Guillemot , S. Leon , F. Nouel , Ch. Sirmain , S. Feltham
{"title":"Cold atoms in space and atomic clocks: ACES","authors":"Ch. Salomon , N. Dimarcq , M. Abgrall , A. Clairon , P. Laurent , P. Lemonde , G. Santarelli , P. Uhrich , L.G. Bernier , G. Busca , A. Jornod , P. Thomann , E. Samain , P. Wolf , F. Gonzalez , Ph. Guillemot , S. Leon , F. Nouel , Ch. Sirmain , S. Feltham","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01274-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01274-4","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In this article, the interest of space environment for cold atoms is outlined. After a brief review of cooling techniques and Bose–Einstein condensation, the case of atomic clocks in microgravity is discussed. The scientific objectives of the European mission ACES are presented. ACES will fly onboard the international space station in 2005–2006.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 9","pages":"Pages 1313-1330"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01274-4","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"92105951","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Fundamental physics with the ESA mission GAIA","authors":"François Mignard","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01268-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01268-9","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><span>esa</span> advisory committees have selected the astrometry mission <span>gaia</span> as one of the future cornerstones of the science program. <span>gaia</span> is primarily a mission to study the history, formation and evolution of the Galaxy from astrometric, photometric and spectroscopic measurements, but it also displays remarkable capabilities in some areas of fundamental physics. After introducing briefly the measurement principles and the expected accuracy, I focus on the three topics most relevant for the physicists: the definition and realization of a quasi-inertial machian frame, the testing of the PPN formulation of the gravitational theory and finally a determination of the possible time change of the gravitational constant.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 9","pages":"Pages 1299-1311"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01268-9","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"92105953","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Avant-propos","authors":"Christian J. Bordé, Pierre Touboul","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01266-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01266-5","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 9","pages":"Pages 1243-1248"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01266-5","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"91977277","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"On the two-body problem in general relativity","authors":"Luc Blanchet","doi":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01267-7","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01267-7","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>We consider the two-body problem in post-Newtonian approximations of general relativity. We report the recent results concerning the equations of motion, and the associated Lagrangian formulation, of compact binary systems, at the third post-Newtonian order (∼1/<em>c</em><sup>6</sup> beyond the Newtonian acceleration). These equations are necessary when constructing the theoretical templates for searching and analyzing the gravitational-wave signals from inspiralling compact binaries in VIRGO and LISA type experiments.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100307,"journal":{"name":"Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IV - Physics-Astrophysics","volume":"2 9","pages":"Pages 1343-1352"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2001-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/S1296-2147(01)01267-7","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"91106012","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}