Atomic, Molecular, Optical Science

AMOS encompasses the research in
atomic, molecular, and optical science
at the Weizmann Institute of Science.

AMOS Research Areas

AMOS is a center for quantum physics with atomic, molecular, and optical systems, at the Weizmann Institute of Science. The center includes 15 research groups and activities ranging across most contemporary topics in AMO physics - from atto-second pulses and intense lasers, through precision spectroscopy of ultracold atoms, molecules or ions, to quantum information and quantum optics. AMOS members hold faculty appointments in both the Physics and Chemistry Faculties at the Weizmann Institute of Science.

A wide range of interests and scientific excellence contribute to making AMOS one of Israel's leading research centers. AMOS scientists publish annually numerous scientific manuscripts in leading journals.

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News

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Seminars

  • 04
    Mar 2025
    13:15

    PhD defense

    Omer Kneller

    Attosecond science has revolutionized the ability to capture extremely fast phenomena in nature, opening a window into a new temporal regime, in which electron dynamics are observed on their natural time scale (1 as = 10-18 sec). Attosecond metrology relies on the ability to produce optical pulses, having attosecond duration, imprinting the electronic dynamics in their spectral intensity, phase and polarization state. However, the optical measurement resolves only the spectral intensity while the phase and polarization information are lost, preventing a direct access to the full information encoded in the attosecond signal.
    In this talk, I will describe the application of one of the most fundamental optical schemes, interferometry, in the attosecond timescale [1,2]. Extending this scheme to the dynamic regime has unlocked new and exciting horizons in attosecond science. Time-resolved attosecond interferometry probes the evolution of an electronic wavefunction under the tunneling barrier, as it propagates in a classically forbidden region [3]. Its application to light-driven quantum systems decouples and follows the temporal evolution of individual underlying quantum paths with unprecedented precision and reveals the sub-cycle vectorial properties of transient light-matter interactions [4,5].
     

    1. Azoury, D., Kneller, O., et al. Electronic wavefunctions probed by all-optical attosecond interferometry. Nature Photon 13, 54–59 (2019).
    2. Azoury*, D., Kneller*, O. et al. Interferometric attosecond lock-in measurement of extreme-ultraviolet circular dichroism. Nature Photon 13, 198–204 (2019).
    3. Kneller, O. et al. A look under the tunnelling barrier via attosecond-gated interferometry. Nat. Photon. 16, 304–310 (2022).
    4. Kneller*, O., Mor*, C., Klimkin*, N.D. et al. Attosecond transient interferometry. Nat. Photon. 19, 134–141 (2025).
    5. Kneller, O. et al. Attosecond Fourier transform spectroscopy. Submitted (2025).
     

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Publications

  • Quantum control of ion-atom collisions beyond the ultracold regime

    Walewski M. Z., Frye M. D., Katz O., Pinkas M., Ozeri R. & Tomza M. (2025) Science Advances.
    Tunable scattering resonances are crucial for controlling atomic and molecular systems. However, their use has so far been limited to ultracold temperatures. These conditions remain hard to achieve for most hybrid trapped ion-atom systemsa prospective platform for quantum technologies and fundamental research. Here, we measure inelastic collision probabilities for Sr<sup>+</sup> + Rb and use them to calibrate a comprehensive theoretical model of ion-atom collisions. Our theoretical results, compared with experimental observations, confirm that quantum interference effects persist to the multiple-partial-wave regime, leading to the pronounced state and mass dependence of the collision rates. Using our model, we go beyond interference and identify a rich spectrum of Feshbach resonances at moderate magnetic fields with the Rb atom in its lower (f = 1) hyperfine state, which persist at temperatures as high as 1 millikelvin. Future observation of these predicted resonances should allow precise control of the short-range dynamics in Sr<sup>+</sup> + Rb collisions under unprecedentedly warm conditions.

  • Programmable Quantum Simulations on a Trapped-Ion Quantum Computer with a Global Drive

    Shapira Y., Markov J., Akerman N., Stern A. & Ozeri R. (2025) Physical Review Letters.
    Simulation of quantum systems is notoriously challenging for classical computers, while quantum hardware is naturally well-suited for this task. However, the imperfections of contemporary quantum systems pose a considerable challenge in carrying out accurate simulations over long evolution times. Here, we experimentally demonstrate a method for quantum simulations on a small-scale trapped-ion-based quantum simulator. Our method enables quantum simulations of programmable spin-Hamiltonians, using only simple global fields, driving all qubits homogeneously and simultaneously. We measure the evolution of a quantum Ising ring and accurately reconstruct the Hamiltonian parameters, showcasing an accurate and high-fidelity simulation. Our method enables a significant reduction in the required control and depth of quantum simulations, thus generating longer evolution times with higher accuracy.