Peering into precise ultrafast dynamics in matter

A team of researchers from Beijing led by Prof. Dr. Sheng Meng has succeeded in developing predictive first-principles approaches for investigating precise ultrafast processes in matter. The method, named TDAP  (time-dependent ab initio propagation), aims at providing robust dynamic simulations of light-induced, highly nonlinear phenomena which are at the atomic and molecular level and occur within a few femtoseconds (10-15 sec) or even attoseconds (10-18 sec). Fundamental interactions among different degrees of freedom can now be understood more precisely, purely based on quantum mechanical principles, according to the researchers. The results of the research have been published in the journal Ultrafast Science and are expected to foster a variety of further developments in related scientific fields.