Physical principles of lasers. Main typologies of lasers.
Applications in different fields: biomedicine, environment, industry, cultural heritage, space.
This course aims at introducing the theoretical foundations of laser functioning, and the main application of lasers in different fields (biomedical, environment, industrial, cultural heritage, space).
At the end, the student should master the working principles of laser systems, and should be able to understand and critically evaluate a scientific publication on an application of lasers.
Prerequisites
Quantum mechanics
Teaching Methods
Class lectures, lab visits
Further information
None
Type of Assessment
Oral exam. During the exam, the student will present and discuss a scientific paper. The evaluation will focus on the paper understanding skills and the communication efficacy.
Course program
1. Introduction
2. Two-level systems
3. Optical cavity
4. Types of lasers
5. Instrumentation for laser manipulation: lenses, mirrors, polarization optical elements, acousto-optical elements, electro-optical elements, galvanometers, optical fibers.
6. Non-linear microscopy: TPF and SHG, with lab visit
7. In vivo light-sheet microscopy for neuronal activity imaging, with lab visit
8. Ex vivo light-sheet microscopy for neuronal activity imaging, with lab visit
9. Tissue imaging with vibrational microscopy (Raman, etc.), with lab visit
10. Optical tweezers, with lab visit
11. Single-molecule detection, with lab visit
12. Super-resolution, with lab visit
13. Laser microsurgery
14. Optogenetics
15. Random-access microscopy for cardiac activity imaging, with lab visit
16. Environmental monitoring
17. Industrial applications
18. Cultural heritage
19. Space