What is an attosecond? A physical chemist explains the tiny time scale behind Nobel ...

[Jim__]

... Prize-winning research

From phys.org

Pump-probe spectroscopy is a common technique in physics and chemistry and can be performed with attosecond light pulses.
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A group of three researchers earned the 2023 Nobel Prize in physics for work that has revolutionized how scientists study the electron—by illuminating molecules with attosecond-long flashes of light. But how long is an attosecond, and what can these infinitesimally short pulses tell researchers about the nature of matter?

I first learned of this area of research as a graduate student in physical chemistry. My doctoral adviser's group had a project dedicated to studying chemical reactions with attosecond pulses. Before understanding why attosecond research resulted in the most prestigious award in the sciences, it helps to understand what an attosecond pulse of light is.
How long is an attosecond?

"Atto" is the scientific notation prefix that represents 10⁻¹⁸, which is a decimal point followed by 17 zeroes and a 1. So a flash of light lasting an attosecond, or 0.000000000000000001 of a second, is an extremely short pulse of light.

In fact, there are approximately as many attoseconds in one second as there are seconds in the age of the universe.

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