Objective
In this project we propose the development of energetic ultra fast laser-driven radiation sources. A powerful, high repetition rate, infrared (IR) femtosecond (fs) laser will be used to produce secondary sources of radiation that will cover other parts of t he spectrum, from x-rays, UV and visible to the far-infrared, THz and micro-waves. A major advantage of these secondary sources is their ultra-short nature as they result from highly non-linear processes during the femtosecond laser pulse interaction with matter (solids, gases and plasma). The project has a dual aim: characterise the secondary sources (spectral and spatio-temporal attributes), and explore their cross-disciplinary applications in biology, biomedicine, chemistry, materials science and physics. Examples of applications include: the development of fs x-ray pulses to study the ultra-short structural evolution of proteins and other biological agents, THz radiation for bio-medical imaging as a non-ionizing alternative to existing techniques, direct use of the IR fs laser (and its harmonics) for micro structuring and engraving of photonic elements in the bulk of glasses and crystals (waveguides, couplers, micro-Fresnel lenses, Bragg gratings, etc), environmental monitoring using a broadband spectrum spanning from the UV to the mid-IR. The team leader, with his high quality and internationally recognized academic track-record in nonlinear optics and powerful fs lasers, together with the host institute, with its world-wide recognized research centres in physics, chemistry, materials science, biology and biotechnology, guarantee the success of the present project
Fields of science
Call for proposal
FP6-2005-MOBILITY-8
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