PhD 2001 with distinction TU Munich, Oberass./Habil. ETH Zürich. 2007 at ICFO, pioneered mid-IR photonics, attosecond soft X-rays and laser-induced electron diffraction with breakthroughs in molecular dynamics and dynamics in materials. As. Editor OPTICA and Ultrafast Science; Fellow of Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes; Fellow of Optica; Fellow of the American Physical Society; Thousand Talents Program Award China; OSA Allen Prize; Bessel Prize of the Humboldt Foundation; ERC Advanced Grant and Proof of Concept Grant; Adj. Prof. at University of New Mexico USA; Guest Professor at Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society; Whitebook Extreme Light Infrastructure; Executive Director Laserlab-Europe (45 infrastructures 22 countries), Board of Directors Optica and Chair Meetings Council, Board of Chairs of Analytical Research Infrastructures of EU (40,000 researchers, 7 networks).
Research interests
Our research in Attosecond Quantum Dynamics aims at revealing the dynamic behaviour of the quantum world within atoms molecules and solids that lead to macrocopic functionalities. We use attosecond soft x-ray pulses and quantum microscopy with single electrons to address fundamental problems such as molecular isomerization, phase transitions and superconductivity with applications across quantum sensing, energy harvesting and storage, efficent sensing and computing.
Selected publications
- Belsa B, Ziems KM, Sanchez A, Chirvi K, Liu X, Grafe S & Biegert J 2022, 'Laser-induced electron diffraction in the over-the-barrier-ionization regime', Physical Review A, 106, 4, 043105.
- Alcalà J, Bhattacharya U, Biegert J, et al. 2022, 'High-harmonic spectroscopy of quantum phase transitions in a high-Tc superconductor', Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences Of The United States Of America, 119, 40, e2207766119.
Selected research activities
We have pioneered ultrafast and intense mid-IR sources and used ponderomotive scaling to realize single electron diffraction imaging of the atomic structure of a single molecule. The same scaling as allowed realizing the first tablet top source of attosecond soft x-rays. This source provides higher flux than a slicing source with 100 fold shorter pulse duration. A mid-IR OPCPA was recently demonstrated which provides coherent light across 7 optical octaves with orders of magnitude higher brightness than the brightest synchrotron light source.