Ein kurzer Laserpuls ionisiert ein Helium-Atom und kann den Zustand des verbleibenden Elektrons verändern.
Scientists from TU Wien (Vienna, Austria) and Germany present the most accurate time measurements of quantum jumps to date. Quantum particles can change their state very quickly - this is called a 'quantum jump'. An atom, for example, can absorb a photon, thereby changing into a state of higher energy. Usually, these processes are thought to happen instantaneously, from one moment to the next. However, with new methods, developed at TU Wien (Vienna), it is now possible to study the time structure of such extremely fast state changes. Much like an electron microscope allows us to take a look at tiny structures which are too small to be seen with the naked eye, ultrashort laser pulses allow us to analyse temporal structures which used to be inaccessible. The theoretical part of the project was done by Prof. Joachim Burgdörfer's team at TU Wien (Vienna), which also developed the initial idea for the experiment.
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