Subcycle Dynamics in the Laser Ionization of Molecules

The time and momentum distributions of electron emission from a molecule during a single laser cycle are calculated by solving a two-dimensional time-dependent Schr{umlt o}dinger equation. The momentum distributions strongly depend on the orbital symmetry and orientation of the molecular axis. Field-induced internal dynamics of the molecule can shift electron emission and recollision times through a large part of the laser cycle, which leads to corresponding variations of high-harmonic emission times and to the appearance of even harmonics

Biology and dynamics of potential malaria vectors in Southern France

BACKGROUND: Malaria is a former endemic problem in the Camargue, South East France, an area from where very few recent data concerning Anopheles are available. A study was undertaken in 2005 to establish potential malaria vector biology and dynamics and evaluate the risk of malaria re-emergence. METHODS: Mosquitoes were collected in two study areas, from March to October 2005, one week every two weeks, using light traps+CO(2), horse bait traps, human bait catch, and by collecting females in resting sites. RESULTS: Anopheles hyrcanus was the most abundant Anopheles species. Anopheles melanoon was less abundant, and Anopheles atroparvus and Anopheles algeriensis were rare. Anopheles hyrcanus and An. melanoon were present in summer, whereas An. atroparvus was present in autumn and winter. A large number of An. hyrcanus females was collected on humans, whereas almost exclusively animals attracted An. melanoon. Based on an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, almost 90% of An. melanoon blood meals analysed had been taken on horse or bovine. Anopheles hyrcanus and An. melanoon parity rates showed huge variations according to the date and the trapping method. CONCLUSION: Anopheles hyrcanus seems to be the only Culicidae likely to play a role in malaria transmission in the Camargue, as it is abundant and anthropophilic

Status of the SPARC-X Project

SPARC-X is a two branch project consisting in the SPARC test facility dedicated to the development and test of critical subsystems such as high brightness photoinjector and a modular expandable undulator for SASE-FEL experiments at 500 nm with seeding, and the SPARX facility aiming at generation of high brilliance coherent radiation in the 1.5-13 nm range, based on the achieved expertise. The projects are supported by MIUR (Research Department of Italian Government) and Regione Lazio. SPARC has completed the commissioning phase of the photoinjector in November 2006. The achieved experimental results are here summarized together with the status of the second phase commissioning plans. The SPARX project is based on the generation of ultra high peak brightness electron beams at the energy of 1 and 2 GeV generating radiation in the 1.5-13 nm range. The construction is at the moment planned in two steps starting with a 1 GeV Linac. The project layout including both RF-compression and magnetic chicane techniques has been studied

Temporal and spectral tailoring of high-order harmonics

We demonstrate that the main features of high harmonic generation by ultrashort laser pulses can be explained in terms of the intensity dependent phase of the atomic polarization. Focusing conditions and chirped driving fields may be used to control the harmonic spectrum, while temporal compression provides a unique way to tailor the time profile

Theory of high-order harmonic generation by an elliptically polarized laser field

We generalize a recently formulated theory of high-order harmonic generation by low-frequency laser fields [Anne L'Huillier et al., Phys. Rev. A 48, R3433 (1993)] to the case of an elliptically polarized light. Our theoretical description includes both the single-atom response and propagation. Phase matching significantly modifies the results obtained in the single-atom response. The results of our calculations, including propagation for both the intensity and polarization properties of harmonics as a function of laser ellipticity, compare very well with recent experimental observations

Generation of attosecond pulses in macroscopic media

We describe theoretically the generation of ultrashort (subfemtosecond) pulses using high-order harmonics of a laser pulse with a time-dependent degree of ellipticity. The single-atom response is calculated by using a low-frequency strong-field approximation. Propagation effects are taken into account using a method going beyond the slowly varying envelope approximation. Propagation modifies significantly the results obtained in the single-atom response and, in certain conditions, makes the generation of one attosecond pulse possible. We discuss prospects for the observation of these ultrashort pulses. [S1050-2947(97)09411-0]