Catching atoms in beams of light

Michael Schirber

Nobel Prize: Flashes of Light Catch Electrons in the ActThe 2023 Nobel Prize in Physics honors the field of attosecond physics, which offers a nonblurry view of the fast-moving electrons inside atoms and molecules.

Andreas Osterwalder

Luis A. Orozco

When measuring photons, it's a case of 'wanted, dead' — catching them alive is not an option. But we can observe how a superposition of many photon waves progressively collapses as it interacts with a beam of atoms.

Anonymous

Sonja Franke‐Arnold, Aidan S. Arnold

Patrice Loïez

Photo 03: Laser beams are prepared for shooting at antiprotonic helium atoms. Left to right: Masaki Hori (Tokyo University) and John Eades (CERN). Photo 01: Dye laser triggered by "YAG" laser. Photo 02: Masaki Hori adjusting optical system of laser beams.