Have you ever felt that the very title, Progress in Optics, conjured an image in your mind? Don’t you see a row of handsomely printed books, bearing the editorial stamp of one of the most brilliant members of the optics community, and chronicling the field of optics since the invention of the laser? If so, you are certain to move the bookend to make room for Volume 16, the latest of this series. It contains seven chapters on widely diverging topics, written by well-known authorities in their fields. These are: 1) Laser Selective Photophysics and Photochemistry by V. S. Letokhov, 2) Recent Advances in Phase Profiles (sic) Generation by J. J. Clair and C. I. Abitbol, 3 ) Computer-Generated Holograms: Techniques and Applications by W.-H. Lee, 4) Speckle Interferometry by A. E. Ennos, 5 ) Deformation  Invariant, Space-Variant Optical  Pattern Recognition by D. Casasent and D. Psaltis, 6) Light Emission from High-Current Surface-Spark Discharges by R. E. Beverly, and 7) Semiclassical Radiation  Theory within a  QuantumMechanical Framework by I. R. Senitzkt. The  breadth of topic  matter  spanned  by  these  chapters makes it impossible, for this reviewer at least, to pass judgement on the comprehensiveness, relevance, and completeness of every chapter. With an editorial board as prominent as that of Progress in Optics, however, it seems hardly likely that such comments should be necessary. It should certainly be possible to take the authority of each author as credible. The only remaining judgment to be  made on these chapters is their readability. In short, what are they like to read? The first sentence of the first chapter greets the eye with an obvious typographical error: “The creation of coherent laser light source, that have tunable radiation, opened the . . . .” Two pages later we find: “When two types of atoms or molecules of different isotopic composition ( A and B ) have even one spectral line that does not overlap with others, it is pos-

Progress in optics

As materials science is moving towards the synthesis, the study and the processing of new materials exhibiting well-defined and complex functions, the synthesis of new multifunctional materials is one of the important challenges. One of these complex physical properties is magneto-chiral dichroism which arises, at second order, from the coexistence of spatial asymmetry and magnetization in a material. Herein we report the first measurement of strong magneto-chiral dichroism in an enantiopure chiral ferromagnet. The ab initio synthesis of the enantiopure chiral ferromagnet is based on an enantioselective self-assembly, where a resolved chiral quaternary ammonium cation imposes the absolute configurations of the metal centres within chromium-manganese two-dimensional oxalate layers. The ferromagnetic interaction between Cr(III) and Mn(II) ions leads to a Curie temperature of 7 K. The magneto-chiral dichroic effect is enhanced by a factor of 17 when entering into the ferromagnetic phase.

Strong magneto-chiral dichroism in enantiopure chiral ferromagnets

We have experimentally studied the propagation of two optical fields in a dense rubidium (Rb) gas in the case when an additional microwave field is coupled to the hyperfine levels of Rb atoms. The Rb energy levels form a close-$\ensuremath{\Lambda}$ three-level system coupled to the optical fields and the microwave field. It has been found that the maximum transmission of the probe field depends on the relative phase between the optical and the microwave fields. We have observed both constructive and destructive interferences in electromagnetically induced transparency. A simple theoretical model and a numerical simulation have been developed to explain the observed experimental results.

/pdf/electromagnetically-induced-transparency-controlled-by-a-1jbxeesllm.pdf

Electromagnetically induced transparency controlled by a microwave field

Quantum optics with X-rays has long been a somewhat exotic activity, but it is now rapidly becoming relevant as precision x-ray optics and novel X-ray light sources, and high-intensity lasers are becoming available. This article gives an overview of the current state of the field and an outlook to future prospects.

X-ray quantum optics

We summarize recent developments in direct frequency-comb spectroscopy that allowed high-resolution, broad-bandwidth measurements of multiple atomic and molecular resonances using only a phase-stabilized femtosecond laser, opening the way for merging precision spectroscopy with coherent control.

/pdf/direct-frequency-comb-spectroscopy-1624eyk41o.pdf

Direct frequency comb spectroscopy

We introduce a novel technique that elegantly combines frequency-and time-resolved CARS spectroscopy. The proposed scheme is tested in back-scattered CARS experiments on a powder of sodium dipicolinate, holding promise for remote/stand-of detection applications.

Hybrid of Frequency and Time Resolved CARS

We observe transmission of the radiation of a diode laser in the mode-locked regime through the cell containing optically dense Rb vapor under the condition where the hyperfine splitting of Rb is a multiple of the modulation frequency.

Electromagnetically induced transparency with a train of short pulses in Rb vapor

We investigate cooperative emission from a rubidium vapor, and demonstrate a controlled transition from yoked superfluorescence to three-photon-induced superradiance by driving the medium with co-propagating ultrashort laser pulses. We study temporal emission profiles and time delays on a picosecond time scale and compare the measured pulse shapes with simulations. Our results suggest strategies to improve efficiency of mirrorless lasers and superradiant light sources. c ⃝ 2013 Optical Society of America OCIS codes: 020.0020, 270.6630, 320.7100.

Controlling the transition from yoked superuorescence to superradiance

We have experimentally demonstrated CARS scattering in the forward and backward directions. The signal observed in the backscattered is of the orders of magnitude stronger than would be expected.

Observation of coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering in phase-mismatched direction

Summary form only given. The phenomenon of "dark resonances" or coherent population trapping is a well known concept in optics and laser spectroscopy. It can be considered as the basis for such effects as electromagnetically induced transparency and lasing without inversion. We report the observation of the novel spectral features which arise in systems where multiple quantum superposition states are coupled and interact coherently. These novel resonances correspond to the recently predicted "double-dark states". In the experiment, an optically thin ensemble of rubidium-37 atoms in zero magnetic field is excited in a /spl Lambda/ configuration with circularly polarized light from a pair of 789 nm diode lasers.

V.A. Sautenkov

Papers

Hybrid of Frequency and Time Resolved CARS

Electromagnetically induced transparency with a train of short pulses in Rb vapor

Controlling the transition from yoked superuorescence to superradiance

Observation of coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering in phase-mismatched direction

Observation of "double-dark" resonances