Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English en
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS
Content archived on 2024-06-18

Attoelectronics: Steering electrons in atoms and molecules with synthesized waveforms of light

Objective

In order for electronics to meet the ever raising demands for higher speeds of operation, the dimensions of its basic elements drop continuously. This miniaturization, that will soon meet the dimensions of a single molecule or an atom, calls for new approaches in electronics that take advantage, rather than confront the dominant at these scales quantum laws.

Electronics on the scale of atoms and molecules require fields that are able to trigger and to steer electrons at speeds comparable to their intrinsic dynamics, determined by the quantum mechanical laws. For the valence electrons of atoms and molecules, this motion is clocked in tens to thousands of attoseconds, (1 as =10-18 sec) implying the potential for executing basic electronic operations in the PHz regime and beyond. This is approximately ~1000000 times faster as compared to any contemporary technology.

To meet this challenging goal, this project will utilize conceptual and technological advances of attosecond science as its primary tools. First, pulses of light, the fields of which can be sculpted and characterized with attosecond accuracy, for triggering as well as for terminating the ultrafast electron motion in an atom or a molecule. Second, attosecond pulses in the extreme ultraviolet, which can probe and frame-freeze the created electron motion, with unprecedented resolution, and determine the direction and the magnitude of the created currents.

This project will interrogate the limits of the fastest electronic motion that light fields can trigger as well as terminate, a few hundreds of attoseconds later, in an atom or a molecule. In this way it aims to explore new routes of atomic and molecular scale electronic switching at PHz frequencies.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

ERC-2010-StG_20091028
See other projects for this call

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

ERC-SG - ERC Starting Grant

Host institution

MAX-PLANCK-GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER WISSENSCHAFTEN EV
EU contribution
€ 1 262 000,00
Address
HOFGARTENSTRASSE 8
80539 MUNCHEN
Germany

See on map

Region
Bayern Oberbayern München, Kreisfreie Stadt
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

No data

Beneficiaries (1)

My booklet 0 0