Our main research projects are listed below. At any time, we also have individual smaller projects.
- Fiber Laser Oscillators and Amplifiers
We are working to develop sources of ultrashort optical pulses that could be used in applications outside of basic research laboratories. Our activities range from theoretical studies of new mechanisms for shaping pulses in lasers to laser engineering. Currently we are focused primarily on fiber lasers and amplifiers.
- Nonlinear Optics and Solitons
Optical solitons are packets of localized electromagnetic radiation that propagate without spreading out despite diffraction or group-velocity dispersion. We are working to generate fully-confined spatiotemporal solitons (sometimes referred to as "light bullets"), and we are also investigating the potential future uses of light bullets in information processing.
This work ranges from basic physics to applications. We are studying the electronic, optical, and vibrational properties of semiconductor nanocrystals, or 'quantum dots', and applying that knowledge in applications. Current applications include efficient IR LEDs and solar cells.
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