Attosecond pulses and quantum dots: exploring the physics behind this year’s Nobel prizes
Oct 5, 2023
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Physics World's Margaret Harris and Matin Durrani discuss the Nobel Prizes for Physics and Chemistry. They explore the concept and significance of attosecond pulses in studying atoms and electrons, as well as the research behind the development of attosecond pulses. The hosts also delve into quantum dots and their applications, address the leakage of the chemistry Nobel Prize winners, and promote the podcast's sponsor.
The Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded for the development of auto-second pulses of light, allowing the study of electron behavior and providing insights into material properties and photosynthesis.
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded for the discovery and synthesis of quantum dots, nanometer-scale crystals with unique electronic properties, offering potential advancements in LED lighting, electronic displays, and medical imaging.
Deep dives
Physics Prize: Development of auto-second pulses for studying electrodynamics in matter
The Physics Prize was awarded to Pierre Agostini, Ferrence Krauss, and Anne Luele for their work in developing experimental methods that generate auto-second pulses of light. Auto-second pulses, which are extremely short bursts of light lasting 10^-18 seconds, allow physicists to study the movement of electrons around atoms. This research has revolutionized our understanding of electron behavior and has the potential to provide insights into the properties of materials and phenomena such as photosynthesis.
Chemistry Prize: Discovery and synthesis of quantum dots
The Chemistry Prize was awarded to Moongi Bewendy, Lewis Bruce, and Alexi Ikeimov for their discovery and synthesis of quantum dots. Quantum dots are nanometer-scale crystals made from semiconductor materials that possess unique electronic properties. These structures can absorb and emit light at specific wavelengths, making them valuable for applications such as LED lighting, electronic displays, and medical imaging. The laureates' contributions included making a breakthrough in synthesizing quantum dots in a controlled and consistent size, opening up possibilities for various technological advancements.
Gender imbalance in Nobel Prize winners and coverage
The podcast episode also discussed the gender imbalance among Nobel Prize winners and the coverage of women in physics. Anne Luele, one of the Chemistry laureates, is just the fifth woman to have won the Nobel Prize for Physics out of a total of 224 laureates, highlighting the ongoing lack of diversity and inclusion in the field. The podcast hosts also reflected on the representation of women in their own coverage of physics, acknowledging that more progress is needed to ensure equal recognition and opportunity for women in the field.
Controversies and considerations surrounding the Nobel Prize
The podcast briefly touched upon two noteworthy topics related to the Nobel Prize. Firstly, it mentioned the leakage of the Chemistry Prize winners before the official announcement, highlighting the rarity of such occurrences and the generally rigorous and secretive process of selecting Nobel laureates. Secondly, the podcast explored the debate around the rule that limits the number of recipients to three, questioning whether expanding this limit would ensure more equitable acknowledgement for contributions in cases where multiple individuals or groups have made significant discoveries or advancements in a particular field.
It has been a very exciting week in the world of physics. The winners of the 2023 Nobel Prize for Physics were announced on Tuesday and on Wednesday we learned that this year’s chemistry prize has a very strong connection to physics. And to top it all off, the names of the chemistry winners were leaked several hours before the announcement was made.
So we definitely have lots to talk about in this episode of the Physics World Weekly podcast, which features Physics World’s Margaret Harris, Matin Durrani and Hamish Johnston.
Physics World‘s Nobel prize coverage is supported by Oxford Instruments Nanoscience, a leading supplier of research tools for the development of quantum technologies, advanced materials and nanoscale devices. Visit nanoscience.oxinst.com to find out more.
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