Generation of 480 nm picosecond pulses for ultrafast excitation of Rydberg atoms.

Atoms in Rydberg states are an important building block for emerging quantum technologies. While excitation to Rydberg orbitals is typically achieved in more than tens of nanoseconds, the physical limit is in fact much faster, at the ten picoseconds level. Here, we tackle such ultrafast Rydberg excitation of a rubidium atom by designing a dedicated pulsed laser system generating 480 nm pulses of 10 ps duration.

Total Syntheses of β- and γ-Naphthocyclinones.

After half a century from their isolation in 1974, we report the first total syntheses of β- and γ-naphthocyclinones, two dimeric pyranonaphthoquinones featuring an unusual bicyclo[3.2.1]-octadienone core.

Regime shift of skeletal δC after 1997/1998 El Nino event in Porites coral from Green Island, Taiwan.

The 1997/1998 El Niño event caused mass coral bleaching and mortality in many tropical and subtropical regions, including corals on Green Island, Taiwan, in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. This study analyzed coral carbon isotope ratios (δC), oxygen isotope ratios (δO), and Sr/Ca ratios for 29 years, including the 1997/1998 El Niño period, to examine how high water temperature events are recorded in coral geochemical indicators. Sr/Ca ratios in coral skeletons from Green Island show the lowest peak, means the highest temperature during the 1997/1998 El Niño period.

Strong Spin-Motion Coupling in the Ultrafast Dynamics of Rydberg Atoms.

Rydberg atoms in optical lattices and tweezers is now a well-established platform for simulating quantum spin systems. However, the role of the atoms' spatial wave function has not been examined in detail experimentally. Here, we show a strong spin-motion coupling emerging from the large variation of the interaction potential over the wave function spread.