*Title: “High-Power Terahertz Generation from Laser-Produced Plasma”
*PHYS 798E and ENEE 698D: Problems in Advanced Physics; Electrophysics
Speaker: Prof. Ki-Yong Kim, Physics and IREAP, U. of Md.
*Abstract:* Sandwiched between the optical and microwave regimes, the far infrared or terahertz (THz) frequency range has recently drawn special attention due to its ubiquitous nature and broad applications. THz radiation (or T-rays) can easily pass through non-polar materials such as clothing, paper, plastics, wood and ceramics. This property allows many applications in molecular sensing, biomedical imaging and spectroscopy, security scanners, and plasma diagnostics. In particular, high-power THz generation is vital for applications in nonlinear THz optics and spectroscopy, and so there is a growing demand for intense, compact THz sources. One approach is to use tabletop, ultrashort-pulsed lasers to produce coherent THz radiation via high field plasma generation in gases, but the physics of the process is not fully understood and requires detailed understanding of strong field ionization processes in atoms and molecules. In addition, there are practical issues to address—Can one control and optimize the process to make compact high-power THz sources? What are the limits on generating and detecting ultra-broadband THz radiation? What interesting nonlinear processes can be driven by powerful THz sources? All these questions will be addressed in this talk.
*Bio: * Ki-Yong Kim is Associate Professor in the Department of Physics and Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics at the University of Maryland, College Park. Dr. Kim received a B.S. in physics from Korea University, Seoul, South Korea, in 1995 and the Ph.D. in physics from the University of Maryland College Park in 2003. Dr. Kim has expertise in ultrafast lasers, optics, and laser-matter interactions with 18 years of research experience. He has authored and co-authored 45 peer-reviewed journals and 98 conference/workshop papers, and given 43 invited (national and international) presentations and served as reviewers for many scientific journals and grants. He has received Early Career Awards from DOE and NSF; Postdoctoral Distinguished Performance Award at Los Alamos National Laboratory in 2007; Marshall N. Rosenbluth Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Award from the American Physical Society in 2004.