EPJ D - Speed-control zone for polar molecules

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Published on 17 June 2010

Stark deceleration has emerged over the last decade as a leading technique for obtaining packets of quantum-state-selected molecules whose velocity can be tuned all the way down to zero. Here, a new compact, ultrahigh-vacuum-compatible Stark decelerator is described and demonstrated. The deceleration stages are fashioned out of tantalum wires, reducing the total length to about a tenth of that of a conventional Stark decelerator with the same number of electrode pairs.

The significantly lower cost of assembling and operating the wire decelerator makes it an attractive source of cold molecules, for use in applications ranging from trapping experiments to cold collisions to sympathetic cooling.

Schrödinger Medal awarded to EPJ D Editor in Chief

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Published on 26 April 2010

Kurt Becker, Associate Provost at the Polytechnic Institute of NYU and Editor in Chief of EPJ D, was awarded the 2010 SASP Erwin Schrödinger Medal. The announcement was made in January 2010 during the Symposium of Atomic, Cluster, and Surface Physics (SASP) held in Obergurgl, Austria. Dr. Becker was cited for his “outstanding scientific achievements and contributions to research in molecular physics – specifically, the interaction of electrons with molecules and clusters – as well as in the properties and applications of plasmas”. The medal is named after the Austrian theoretical physicist Schrödinger, who won the Nobel Prize in 1933 for his work on the development and formulation of quantum mechanics. The entire journal team is delighted for Kurt Becker and congratulates him on this prestigious achievement.

EPJ D - Electrons go unperturbed in a matter-wave interferometer

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Published on 19 April 2010

Photodetachment microscopy provides the best electron affinity measurements on atoms and molecules. Photodetachment of a negative ion produces a nearly free electron, hardly perturbed by the residual atomic core. Applying an external electric field does not only concentrate the photoelectron current in a round spot, but also gives rise to an electron interference pattern, due to the existence of a pair of possible trajectories bound to every point of the spot. This very fundamental matter-wave interferometer produces extraordinarily robust interferograms. Although magnetic fields, even in the sub-microT range, causes fluxes between the interfering trajectories that can be huge compared to the quantum unit of magnetic flux, a magnetic perturbation of the system appears to only produce a global deviation of the spot, without any modification of the interference pattern. The main result of the recent paper published in EPJ D by Chaibi et al. is that even in higher magnetic fields (typically 100 microT) the electron interference phase, or number of interference rings, remain unperturbed. This comfirms photodetachment as a highly accurate method for electron spectrometry and electron affinity measurements.

Quantum memories set to go a long way

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Published on 14 April 2010

Quantum memories are essential elements for many potential applications of quantum technology. Research on the development of such memories is currently very lively, with a particular emphasis on memories that can interface with photons, which are the best carriers of quantum information over long distances. A Colloquium paper in the May issue on EPJ D reviews a number of different approaches to this challenge, with a focus on the approaches that were represented in the large European Union Integrated Project "Qubit Applications". This Colloquium covers solid-state atomic ensembles, nitrogen-vacancy centres, quantum dots, single atoms and atomic gases. Since the considered approaches are very diverse, an important part of the work was to establish criteria that allow a meaningful comparison. The authors discuss both the current experimental state of the art and the potential long-term performance of the various systems.

Giving light a good squeeze

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Published on 01 March 2010

Multi-mode optical systems can improve precision measurements in the domain of quantum imaging and metrology. In this context, mastering quantum fluctuations and correlations in complex optical systems is crucial. In a recent EPJ D paper, the authors G. Patera, N. Treps, C. Fabre and G.J. de Valcárcel present the quantum model for an optical parametric oscillator synchronously pumped by a mode locked laser. To cope with the complexity of a system that usually involves about 100 000 modes, the authors introduce new physical objects that they call supermodes, which are proper combinations of standard modes. Their dynamics is studied from both a classical and a quantum point of view with respect to the experimental condition considered. This study shows that a synchronously pumped optical parametric oscillator is a suitable and malleable source of highly multimode non-classical light in the temporal domain.

Nigel Mason becomes Editor in Chief of EPJ D

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Published on 04 January 2010

We are pleased to announce that from January 2010 Nigel Mason, Professor of Physics at the Open University, UK, will be leading EPJ D, together with Kurt Becker and Claude Fabre. Nigel Mason brings to the journal an interdisciplinary approach to the AMOP field. His research covers a wide range of AMOP topics spanning physics and chemistry including astrochemistry, atmospheric science, surface science and spectroscopy. Since the 1990s he has studied the spectroscopy of over 100 molecules (mainly of atmospheric interest) using synchrotron radiation quantifying their photolysis rates and global warming potential. Research on the formation of molecules by irradiation of low temperature (20K) ices has led to a new research programme exploring processes on planetary systems and in the interstellar medium. Most recently his research has extended to study radiation damage processes within biomolecular systems including DNA.

Atom interferometry in free flight

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Published on 10 December 2009

Philippe Bouyer and co-workers in France performed a range of impressive experiments with an atom interferometer in free flight, onboard an Airbus aircraft making "micro-gravity jumps". These experiments successfully demonstrate that when atoms are sufficiently cooled and controlled, their wave properties can be used to perform interferometry in a way analogous to standard interferometry with light. This moves the field closer to the implementation of a range of sensors for e.g. gravity, rotation and inertia with unprecedented accuracy. Such devices will be potentially very useful in satellites and in space missions.

Time stamping in Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen experiments

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Published on 14 October 2009

Using the time of detection of each single photon, the authors falsify a class of non-ergodic local models that have not been tested in previous experiments on the Bell inequality.

Kurt Becker to lead the plasma physics sections of EPJ D

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Published on 10 July 2009

As of July 2009 The European Physical Journal D - Atomic, Molecular, Optical and Plasma Physics has a third Editor-in-Chief. Kurt H. Becker (NYU-Poly) has been appointed and will work alongside Franco Gianturco and Claude Fabre, toward strengthening EPJ D. His particular emphasis will be on low-temperature plasma physics.

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EPJ D broadens its scope in plasma physics

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Published on 01 August 2006

EPJ D broadens its scope in plasma physics by merging with the Czechoslovak Journal of Physics (CJoP) as of January 1st, 2007. CJoP is presently published by the Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences and distributed by Springer. Publishing in all areas of physics CJoP is particularly active in the field of plasma physics. To reflect this new emphasis in scope, EPJ D has recently changed its subtitle from "Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics" to "Atomic, Molecular, Optical and Plasma Physics". Acta Physica Hungarica B - Quantum Electronics is also merging.