Press release

XL Semanal highlights the career of Carlos Hernández García

The magazine XL Semanal highlights the work and outstanding research career of Carlos Hernández García, a member of our research group at the University of Salamanca. In a recent article, the impact of his research in the field of attophysics—a discipline that allows the study of the smallest and fastest phenomena in the subatomic universe—is emphasized.
 

Hernández García, who has been awarded by the BBVA Foundation and the Spanish Royal Society of Physics, leads research that has enabled the generation of ultrafast laser pulses capable of freezing the movement of subatomic particles, such as electrons. This revolutionary technology opens new avenues for studying and controlling matter at the quantum level.

The article highlights not only his ability to unravel the mysteries of quantum physics but also the enormous potential his work holds for future applications in fields as diverse as electronics, energy, and medicine.

You can read the full article on the XL Semanal website and download it from this link.

From our research group, we celebrate the national recognition of these achievements and congratulate Carlos Hernández García for the acknowledgment of his dedication and efforts.

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The President of the Junta of Castilla y León meets with researchers from the European Research Council program.

On Monday, March 18th, the President of the Junta of Castilla y León, Alfonso Fernández Mañueco, held a meeting with seven out of the nine researchers from the region selected in the European Research Council (ERC) program, among whom is Carlos Hernández García, a member of the ALF Group – USAL and principal investigator of the Attostructura project.

The news has been widely disseminated by several media outlets, which have issued press releases regarding the matter.

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adminThe President of the Junta of Castilla y León meets with researchers from the European Research Council program.

Celebration of the inaugural meeting of the FASLIGHT network

Although in operation since June 2023, the FASLIGHT (RED2022-134391-T) network has officially begun its journey with the celebration of its inaugural meeting.

The meeting took place on January 18 and 19, 2024 at the School of Physics of the University of Salamanca, bringing together more than 65 researchers from the 15 nodes that make up the network.

During the event, representatives of each of the nodes presented their work, lines of research, resources and proposals for collaboration within the network. Almost 30 doctoral students from each of the nodes presented their work in poster format in sessions organized for this purpose.

The news of the holding of the network’s inaugural meeting was published in several local media, including the communication service of the University of Salamanca.

You can view the photos taken during the event on the FASLIGHT network website

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adminCelebration of the inaugural meeting of the FASLIGHT network

Marina Fernández Galán 2nd Prize of the XX ‘Arquímedes’ University Contest for Introduction to Scientific Research

On October 20 at the Ministry of Universities in Madrid, student Marina Fernández Galán was awarded the 2nd Prize of the XX ‘Arquímedes’ University Contest for Introduction to Scientific Research.

The prize was awarded by the Ministry of Universities and the CSIC, for his work entitled “Extreme self-compression of infrared laser pulses in hollow fibers with decreasing pressure gradients” developed from his final degree project under the direction of Enrique Conejero. and Julio San Román.

The complete information is available on the website of the Press Room service of the University of Salamanca and in various media outlets that have also echoed the news.

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adminMarina Fernández Galán 2nd Prize of the XX ‘Arquímedes’ University Contest for Introduction to Scientific Research

María Sánchez, student of the master’s degree in Physics and Technology of Lasers, obtains one of the 20 prestigious international scholarships ‘Optica Woman Scholar’

On October 20 at the Ministry of Universities in Madrid, student Marina Fernández Galán was awarded the 2nd Prize of the XX ‘Arquímedes’ University Contest for Introduction to Scientific Research.

The award was awarded by the Ministry of Universities and the CSIC, for his work entitled “Extreme self-compression of infrared laser pulses in hollow fibers with decreasing pressure gradients” developed from his final degree work under the direction of Enrique Conejero. and Julio San Román.

The complete information is available on the website of the Press Room service of the University of Salamanca and in various media outlets that have also echoed the news.

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adminMaría Sánchez, student of the master’s degree in Physics and Technology of Lasers, obtains one of the 20 prestigious international scholarships ‘Optica Woman Scholar’

Margaret Murnane and Antonio Colinas new Doctors Honoris Causa from USAL

The Irish physicist Margaret Murnane and the Leonese poet Antonio Colinas were invested as honorary doctors from the University of Salamanca on June 19.

The investiture ceremony was presided over by the rector, Ricardo Rivero, and held in the Auditorium of the Escuelas Mayores.

The ceremony held in Latin, in which professors Carlos Hernández García (principal investigator of Attostructura) and María Ángeles Pérez López, from the Department of Applied Physics and the Department of Spanish and Latin American Literature, respectively, acted as godfather and godmother of the new honorary doctors, had the assistance from numerous academic and institutional authorities.

The proposal of the Department of Applied Physics to appoint the scientist Margaret Mary Murnane as doctor honoris causa was defended by Professor Carlos Hernández García. Professor Murnane’s work focuses on the science of X-rays and ultra-fast lasers. Her multiple discoveries have transformed the field, making it possible to capture and manipulate quantum dynamics on the faster time scales relevant to atoms, molecules, and materials.

Her research is distinguished by its innovation, impact and transversality, integrating laser technology as a transforming element in various fields such as optics, magnetism, chemistry, materials engineering or biology. Her ideas have been widely adopted in the worlds of science and industry. In fact, laser light sources based on her work can be found in most universities and research institutions around the world.

During her acceptance speech, Professor Murnane highlighted the scientific collaboration that she has maintained for a decade with the Research Group on Laser Applications and Photonics in Applied Physics and Technology, which she recognized as one of the few research groups in the world with knowledge both optical science and quantum mechanics and atomic physics.

With her appointment as an honorary doctorate, Professor Margaret Murnane has become the eleventh woman to receive that honor at the University of Salamanca. The exhibition “Women honorary doctors at the University of Salamanca”, coordinated by professors Esther del Brío, professor of Financial Economics, and Inmaculada Sánchez Barrios, director of the Equality Unit, already has a panel commemorating the incorporation of Professor Murnane into the faculty of doctors.

Numerous media outlets have echoed her appointment and her inauguration ceremony.

In addition, the entire ceremony can be seen and heard on the USAL YouTube channel and on the USAL Radio service. It is also possible to download the thank you and laudatio speeches at this link.

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adminMargaret Murnane and Antonio Colinas new Doctors Honoris Causa from USAL

LIPSS-induced surface modification of thin films

In this work, the formation of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) on the surfaces of thin films of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and PET reinforced with expanded graphite (EG) was studied. Laser irradiation was carried out by ultraviolet (265 nm) and near-infrared (795 nm) femtosecond laser pulses, and LIPSS were formed in both materials. In all cases, LIPSS had a period close to the irradiation wavelength and were formed parallel to the polarization of the laser beam, although, in the case of UV irradiation, differences in the formation range were observed due to the different thermal properties of the neat polymer in comparison to the composite. To monitor the modification of the physicochemical properties of the surfaces after irradiation as a function of the laser wavelength and of the presence of the filler, different techniques were used. Contact angle measurements were carried out using different reference liquids to measure the wettability and the solid surface free energies. The initially hydrophilic surfaces became more hydrophilic after ultraviolet irradiation, while they evolved to become hydrophobic under near-infrared laser irradiation. The values of the surface free energy components showed changes after nanostructuring, mainly in the polar component. Additionally, for UV-irradiated surfaces, adhesion, determined by the colloidal probe technique, increased, while, for NIR irradiation, adhesion decreased. Finally, nanomechanical properties were measured by the PeakForce Quantitative Nanomechanical Mapping method, obtaining maps of elastic modulus, adhesion, and deformation. The results showed an increase in the elastic modulus in the PET/EG, confirming the reinforcing action of the EG in the polymer matrix. Additionally, an increase in the elastic modulus was observed after LIPSS formation

More info at:

Rodríguez-Beltrán, R. I., Prada-Rodrigo, J., Crespo, A., Ezquerra, T. A., Moreno, P., & Rebollar, E. (2022). Physicochemical Modifications on Thin Films of Poly(Ethylene Terephthalate) and Its Nanocomposite with Expanded Graphite Nanostructured by Ultraviolet and Infrared Femtosecond Laser Irradiation. Polymers, 14(23), 5243. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14235243
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adminLIPSS-induced surface modification of thin films

Castilla y León Televisión echoes the meeting of the expert committee of the ATTOSTRUCTURA project

The television channel Castilla y León Television publishes on its website the news about the meeting of the expert council of the ATTOSTRUCTURA project.

You can read the press release and watch the video on their website.

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adminCastilla y León Televisión echoes the meeting of the expert committee of the ATTOSTRUCTURA project

The OSAL Student Chapter of Salamanca winner of the second Foton 2022 prize awarded by the CSIC

The OSAL Student Chapter of the University of Salamanca has been awarded second place at the Foton 2022 Awards in the Foton Emitted category, for its informative video “The colors in soap bubbles”.

The jury has positively valued “his ability to disclose to the general public, explaining the operation of the phenomenon of interference of light with an accessible and attractive example” in addition to his creativity when showing the colors that are produced in the bubbles.

The video explains the thin film interference phenomenon, which is responsible for the appearance of colors in soap bubbles and which also appears in other situations such as puddles or butterfly wings.

You can see this video (and other very interesting ones too) on the page of the OSAL Student Chapter of Salamanca and read the complete review of the award on the CSIC website.

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adminThe OSAL Student Chapter of Salamanca winner of the second Foton 2022 prize awarded by the CSIC

Cover in the Spanish magazine of physics

The Spanish Journal of Physics carries on the cover of its most recent issue (Vol 36, No (2022)) the illustration by Alba de las Heras in which it is represented the generation of ultraviolet light laser beams with a double structure: vectorial by its azimuthal polarization distribution, and vortex by its transverse phase distribution

These properties are transferred to the high-frequency domain from the high-order harmonic generation process, triggered by an intense structured laser radiating from a gas jet.
 
You can consult more information about these properties in the “Points of interest” section of this issue of the Spanish Journal of Physics or in an article published about it:
 

A. de las Heras, A. K. Pandey, J. San Román, J. Serrano, E. Baynard, G. Dovillaire, M. Pittman, C. G. Durfee, L. Plaja, S. Kazamias, O. Guilbaud y C. Hernández-García, “Extreme-ultraviolet Vector-vortex Beams from High Harmonic Generation”, Optica 9, 71-79 (2022).

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