Ultrafast Laser Spectroscopy with Photons from the IR to the VUV

Light is essential for life. For example, light is key to photosynthesis and vision. Light is also important in technology, such as in nanoscale optoelectronic devices.

Developing a molecular-level understanding of light-induced processes is crucial for the rational design of new light-activated materials to address important challenges currently facing society, such as harnessing solar energy efficiently and developing new tools for disease diagnosis and therapeutics.

Our vision is to establish a unique, state-of-the-art, laser facility providing femtosecond light pulses with a wide range of energies, from the infrared (IR) to the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV), housed in a £2M purpose-built, environmentally-controlled, stable basement laboratory.

We will exploit this facility to improve our fundamental understanding of light-induced processes by using a bottom-up approach to study systems across the complexity scale, from isolated gas-phase molecules to proteins, nanoparticles, soft materials and solids, for applications ranging from bioimaging and therapeutics to solar energy materials.

This will be achieved using a single spectroscopic technique, time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy, in molecular and ion beams, liquid-microjets and surfaces, complemented by femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy, femtosecond stimulated Raman spectroscopy and multi-photon microscopy.