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Gerard Mourou

Bio: Gerard Mourou is an academic researcher from École Polytechnique. The author has contributed to research in topics: Laser & Ultrashort pulse. The author has an hindex of 82, co-authored 653 publications receiving 34147 citations. Previous affiliations of Gerard Mourou include University of Michigan & San Diego State University.


Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
P. Maine1, Donna Strickland1, Philippe Bado1, M. Pessot1, Gerard Mourou1 
01 Dec 1987
TL;DR: In this article, a technique d'amplification d'impulsions a derive de frequence rend possible l'extraction de l'energie de maniere efficace dans des systemes d'AMplification extremement compacts.
Abstract: Des impulsions d'une duree de 1 ps ont ete amplifiees jusqu'au niveau du terawatt par un systeme tres compact a verre dope au neodyme base sur l'utilisation de la technique d'amplification des impulsions a derive de frequence. La divergence du faisceau est egale a deux fois la limite de la diffraction, donnant a cette source une brillance de 2 x 10+ 18 W/(cm 2. sr), ce qui constitue la brillance la plus elevee jamais reportee a ce jour. La technique d'amplification d'impulsions a derive de frequence rend possible l'extraction de l'energie de maniere efficace dans des systemes d'amplification extremement compacts. L'amplification des impulsions a derive de frequence a ete demontree sur neuf ordres de grandeur, du nanojoule jusqu'au niveau du joule. En utilisant une chaine d'amplification a verre au neodyme de grandes dimensions, il devrait etre possible d'etendre cette technique a l'amplification d'impulsions de cent femtosecondes jusqu'au niveau d'une centaine de joules, generant ainsi une puissance instantanee de l'ordre du petawatt. La focalisation ulterieure de ces impulsions pourrait alors donner naissance a des intensites de l'ordre de 1023 W/cm2, 5 ordres de grandeurs au-dessus des performances actuelles.

5 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, high-intensity lasers interacting with plasmas are used to study processes in the laboratory that would otherwise only occur in astrophysics, such as electron acceleration in ultra-high field-gradient wake fields, pressure ionization and continuum lowering in strongly coupled Plasmas, and X-ray line emission via Raman scattering.
Abstract: High-intensity lasers interacting with plasmas are used to study processes in the laboratory that would otherwise only occur in astrophysics. These include relativistic plasmas, electron acceleration in ultrahigh field-gradient wake fields, pressure ionization and continuum lowering in strongly coupled plasmas, and X-ray line emission via Raman scattering.

5 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the observations leading to the conjecture and offer its extension to the case of relativistic electron bunches as the laser's radiating medium (free-electron laser).
Abstract: The recent remark by Mourou and Tajima, Science 331, 41 (2011),on the intensity of the driver laser pulse and the duration of the created pulse that higher driver beam intensities are needed to reach shorter pulses of radiation remains a conjecture without clear theoretical reasoning so far. Here we discuss the observations leading to the conjecture and offer its extension to the case of relativistic electron bunches as the laser's radiating medium (free-electron laser). The idea is further extended towards the regime of vacuum non-linearities.

4 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper , Chen and Mourou proposed a novel method to realize such a system by traversing an ultra-intense laser through a plasma target with a decreasing density, where the physics mimic those of the black hole Hawking radiation, shedding light on the information loss paradox.
Abstract: Accelerating relativistic mirrors have long been recognized as viable settings where the physics mimic those of the black hole Hawking radiation. In 2017, Chen and Mourou proposed a novel method to realize such a system by traversing an ultra-intense laser through a plasma target with a decreasing density. An international AnaBHEL (Analog Black Hole Evaporation via Lasers) collaboration was formed with the objectives of observing the analog Hawking radiation, shedding light on the information loss paradox. To reach these goals, we plan to first verify the dynamics of the flying plasma mirror and characterize the correspondence between the plasma density gradient and the trajectory of the accelerating plasma mirror. We will then attempt to detect the analog Hawking radiation photons and measure the entanglement between the Hawking photons and their “partner particles”. In this paper, we describe our vision and strategy of AnaBHEL using the Apollon laser as a reference, and we report on the progress of our R&D concerning the key components in this experiment, including the supersonic gas jet with a graded density profile, and the superconducting nanowire single-photon Hawking detector. In parallel to these hardware efforts, we performed computer simulations to estimate the potential backgrounds, and derived analytic expressions for modifications to the blackbody spectrum of the Hawking radiation for a perfectly reflecting point mirror, due to the semi-transparency and finite-size effects specific to flying plasma mirrors. Based on this more realistic radiation spectrum, we estimate the Hawking photon yield to guide the design of the AnaBHEL experiment, which appears to be achievable.

4 citations


Cited by
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[...]

08 Dec 2001-BMJ
TL;DR: There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one, which seems an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality.
Abstract: There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality. Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

33,785 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Apr 1988-Nature
TL;DR: In this paper, a sedimentological core and petrographic characterisation of samples from eleven boreholes from the Lower Carboniferous of Bowland Basin (Northwest England) is presented.
Abstract: Deposits of clastic carbonate-dominated (calciclastic) sedimentary slope systems in the rock record have been identified mostly as linearly-consistent carbonate apron deposits, even though most ancient clastic carbonate slope deposits fit the submarine fan systems better. Calciclastic submarine fans are consequently rarely described and are poorly understood. Subsequently, very little is known especially in mud-dominated calciclastic submarine fan systems. Presented in this study are a sedimentological core and petrographic characterisation of samples from eleven boreholes from the Lower Carboniferous of Bowland Basin (Northwest England) that reveals a >250 m thick calciturbidite complex deposited in a calciclastic submarine fan setting. Seven facies are recognised from core and thin section characterisation and are grouped into three carbonate turbidite sequences. They include: 1) Calciturbidites, comprising mostly of highto low-density, wavy-laminated bioclast-rich facies; 2) low-density densite mudstones which are characterised by planar laminated and unlaminated muddominated facies; and 3) Calcidebrites which are muddy or hyper-concentrated debrisflow deposits occurring as poorly-sorted, chaotic, mud-supported floatstones. These

9,929 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
11 Oct 2012-Nature
TL;DR: This work reviews recent progress in graphene research and in the development of production methods, and critically analyse the feasibility of various graphene applications.
Abstract: Recent years have witnessed many breakthroughs in research on graphene (the first two-dimensional atomic crystal) as well as a significant advance in the mass production of this material. This one-atom-thick fabric of carbon uniquely combines extreme mechanical strength, exceptionally high electronic and thermal conductivities, impermeability to gases, as well as many other supreme properties, all of which make it highly attractive for numerous applications. Here we review recent progress in graphene research and in the development of production methods, and critically analyse the feasibility of various graphene applications.

7,987 citations

01 Dec 1982
TL;DR: In this article, it was shown that any black hole will create and emit particles such as neutrinos or photons at just the rate that one would expect if the black hole was a body with a temperature of (κ/2π) (ħ/2k) ≈ 10−6 (M/M)K where κ is the surface gravity of the body.
Abstract: QUANTUM gravitational effects are usually ignored in calculations of the formation and evolution of black holes. The justification for this is that the radius of curvature of space-time outside the event horizon is very large compared to the Planck length (Għ/c3)1/2 ≈ 10−33 cm, the length scale on which quantum fluctuations of the metric are expected to be of order unity. This means that the energy density of particles created by the gravitational field is small compared to the space-time curvature. Even though quantum effects may be small locally, they may still, however, add up to produce a significant effect over the lifetime of the Universe ≈ 1017 s which is very long compared to the Planck time ≈ 10−43 s. The purpose of this letter is to show that this indeed may be the case: it seems that any black hole will create and emit particles such as neutrinos or photons at just the rate that one would expect if the black hole was a body with a temperature of (κ/2π) (ħ/2k) ≈ 10−6 (M/M)K where κ is the surface gravity of the black hole1. As a black hole emits this thermal radiation one would expect it to lose mass. This in turn would increase the surface gravity and so increase the rate of emission. The black hole would therefore have a finite life of the order of 1071 (M/M)−3 s. For a black hole of solar mass this is much longer than the age of the Universe. There might, however, be much smaller black holes which were formed by fluctuations in the early Universe2. Any such black hole of mass less than 1015 g would have evaporated by now. Near the end of its life the rate of emission would be very high and about 1030 erg would be released in the last 0.1 s. This is a fairly small explosion by astronomical standards but it is equivalent to about 1 million 1 Mton hydrogen bombs. It is often said that nothing can escape from a black hole. But in 1974, Stephen Hawking realized that, owing to quantum effects, black holes should emit particles with a thermal distribution of energies — as if the black hole had a temperature inversely proportional to its mass. In addition to putting black-hole thermodynamics on a firmer footing, this discovery led Hawking to postulate 'black hole explosions', as primordial black holes end their lives in an accelerating release of energy.

2,947 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Terahertz spectroscopy and imaging provide a powerful tool for the characterization of a broad range of materials, including semiconductors and biomolecules, as well as novel, higher-power terahertz sources.
Abstract: Terahertz spectroscopy systems use far-infrared radiation to extract molecular spectral information in an otherwise inaccessible portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Materials research is an essential component of modern terahertz systems: novel, higher-power terahertz sources rely heavily on new materials such as quantum cascade structures. At the same time, terahertz spectroscopy and imaging provide a powerful tool for the characterization of a broad range of materials, including semiconductors and biomolecules.

2,673 citations