Laser Experiments for Chemistry and Physics, Second Edition

Lasers are employed throughout science and technology, in fundamental research in chemistry, physics and engineering, the remote sensing and analysis of atmospheric gases or pollutants, communications, medical diagnostics and therapies, and in various forms of manufacturing, including microelectronic devices. Understanding the principles of the operation of lasers which underlies all of these areas is essential for a modern scientific education.

Building on the first edition, Laser Experiments for Chemistry and Physics Second Edition includes experiments with new and improved methods and instrumentation. It explores the characteristics and operation of lasers through laboratory experiments designed for the undergraduate curricula in chemistry and physics. Introductory chapters describe the properties of light, the history of laser invention, the atomic, molecular, and optical principles behind how lasers work and the most important kinds of lasers available today. Other chapters include the basic theory of spectroscopy and computational chemistry used to interpret laser experiments and the applications of lasers in spectroscopy and photochemistry. Experiments range from simple in-class demonstrations to more elaborate configurations for advanced students. Each chapter has historical and theoretical background, as well as options suggested for variations on the prescribed experiments.

This text will be useful for undergraduate students in advanced lab classes, for instructors designing these classes, or for graduate students beginning a career in laser science. It can also be used as a supplementary text for courses in molecular spectroscopy or optics.

Robert N. Compton, Professor Emeritus of Physics and Chemistry, University of Tennessee, USA,Michael A. Duncan, Professor in Department of Chemistry, University of Georgia, USA

Robert N. Compton received degrees in physics from Berea College (BA), the University of Florida (MS), and the University of Tennessee (PhD). He was a Senior Corporate Fellow at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory from 1965 to 1995 and was a Professor of Physics and Zeigler Professor of Chemistry at the University of Tennessee until retirement in 2015. He was a Visiting Professor at the University of Aarhus, the University of Paris, and the FOM Institute in Amsterdam. In 2001, he was an Erskine Fellow at the University of Christchurch, New Zealand. He was a Fellow of the APS, AAAS, and OSA, and received the Beams Award from the American Physical Society, and the Meggers Award from the Optical Society of America. His research interests include negative ions, laser spectroscopy, and molecular chirality. He has published one other book with Nathan I. Hammer, Ethan C. Lambert, and J. Stewart Hager entitled Raman Spectroscopy Under Liquid Nitrogen (RUN).

Michael A. Duncan was born in Greenville, SC, and attended Furman University (B.S. 1976). He received his Ph.D. (1982) at Rice University with Richard Smalley, working on laser photoionization mass spectrometry. He held an NRC Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics (Boulder, CO) with Stephen Leone in 1981-1983. He joined the University of Georgia faculty in 1983 and is now Franklin Professor and Regents' Professor. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, the American Chemical Society, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He was Senior Editor for the Journal of Physical Chemistry (1998-2015).