Nikolay Golubev, Lausanne Switzerland
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Abstract: Irradiation of a molecular system by an intense laser field can initiate dynamics of both electronic and nuclear subsystems. The lighter electrons usually move on much faster, attosecond timescale but the slow nuclear rearrangement damps ultrafast electronic oscillations, leading to the decoherence of the electronic dynamics within a few femtoseconds. Understanding the interplay between the nuclear rearrangement and ultrafast electron motion requires a concerted description of the electron-nuclear correlation and dynamics. In this colloquium, I will present several fully quantum and semiclassical approaches capable of simulating the electron-nuclear dynamics triggered by the ionization or excitation of polyatomic molecules. Turning theory into practice, I will discuss the possibilities to trace the ultrafast molecular dynamics by attosecond transient-absorption spectroscopy and present recent experimental measurements utilizing this technique. The ability to simulate and observe the electronic and nuclear dynamics can provide new insights to understand properties of matter, and eventually bring us to extremely appealing possibilities to control chemical reactivity of molecules by external electromagnetic fields. An outlook on these prospects will be given. ** Refreshments served from 2:45pm – 3:00pm in PAS 218. Thank you. **