Attosecond Physics – the first decade

Abstract

Deep inside matter, our ideas of time lose their validity. Light flashes which last only a few millionths to billionths of a billionth second snatch from the microcosm its closely guarded secrets: Electron movements become visible. Quantum phenomena can be examined in real time. The control of elementary particles comes within reach. Responsible for all that is the young science of attosecond physics, „born”︁ in 2001, when Prof. Ferenc Krausz succeeded in producing and measuring light flashes which last less than one femtosecond. Krausz founded the Laboratory for Attosecond Physics (LAP) which is located at the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics in Garching, Germany. Here is the history of how Attosecond Physics has been developed in LAP over the last ten years.