Contact Information
Department of Physics525 Northwestern Avenue
West Lafayette, IN
47907-2036
Map and Directions
Telephone:
(765) 494-2970
Fax:
(765) 494-0706
AMO Physics Research
Atomic, Molecular, and Optical (AMO) Physics is one of the burgeoning areas in the landscape of experimental and theoretical physics. This field is concerned with understanding basic phenomena ranging from the few-body to the many-body level. Included are processes such as chemical reactions of small molecules at ultracold temperatures, where the field begins to merge with the sister subject of chemical physics, and the behavior of quantum gases such as Bose-Einstein condensates and degenerate Fermi gases as well as Bose-Fermi mixtures, which connects with modern day condensed-matter physics. AMO Physics also connects deeply with recent efforts worldwide in the subject of quantum information and computing, as well as the quantum teleportation and encryption of information. The physics of ultrafast laser pulses lasting less than 10-15 seconds, and the use of such pulses to control the behavior of quantum atomic and molecular systems, is another of these stimulating areas, ripe for new explorations.
The participation of the Purdue Physics Department in this dynamic subfield is presently in a growth phase, for both theory and experiment. One of the most exciting possibilities that is pervasive in nearly all aspects of AMO Physics is the idea of controlling the forces in any system through the clever application of external electromagnetic fields.
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