Biography:Margaret Murnane: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|Irish physicist and pioneer of ultrafast x-ray science}} | {{Short description|Irish physicist and pioneer of ultrafast x-ray science}} | ||
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| name = Margaret Murnane | | name = Margaret Murnane | ||
Revision as of 17:34, 24 May 2026
| Margaret Murnane | |
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| Margaret Murnane | |
| Born | 23 January 1959 County Limerick, Ireland
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| Known for | Ultrafast x-ray science; high-harmonic generation; tabletop coherent x-ray sources; nanometer-scale imaging |
| Awards | MacArthur Fellowship (2000); Frederic Ives Medal/Jarus W. Quinn Prize; Benjamin Franklin Medal in Physics; R. W. Wood Prize |
Margaret Mary Murnane (born 23 January 1959) is an Irish physicist known for work in ultrafast laser science, high-harmonic generation, and coherent x-ray sources. She is a Distinguished Professor at the University of Colorado Boulder and a fellow of JILA, where her research connects laser physics, atomic and molecular physics, nanoscience, and materials imaging.[1][2]
Murnane's work helped establish tabletop ultrafast x-ray science: the use of compact laser-driven sources to generate coherent extreme-ultraviolet and soft x-ray light. These sources allow researchers to observe fast electronic, magnetic, chemical, and structural dynamics in matter.
Quantum and optical physics
High-harmonic generation is a strongly quantum process in which intense laser fields drive electrons away from atoms or solids and then back again, producing bursts of high-frequency light. Murnane and collaborators developed experimental methods that made this process useful as a coherent laboratory-scale x-ray source.
In the Quantum Collection, Murnane is especially connected with:
Ultrafast x-ray science
Murnane's research group uses femtosecond and attosecond light pulses to study how electrons, spins, and lattice motion evolve in materials. This work links quantum dynamics with practical imaging and spectroscopy tools. It is important for observing processes that are too fast for ordinary optical or x-ray instruments.
She has also worked closely with Henry Kapteyn on laser-driven coherent x-ray generation and founded KMLabs with him to commercialize ultrafast laser technology.
Recognition
Murnane received a MacArthur Fellowship in 2000. Her later honors include major awards from optics and physics organizations for contributions to ultrafast optical science, coherent x-ray generation, and imaging.[3]
See also
- Biography:Henry Kapteyn
- Physics:Quantum optics
- Physics:Quantum dynamics
- Physics:Quantum spectroscopy
References
- ↑ "Margaret Murnane". Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Murnane.
- ↑ "Murnane, Margaret". American Institute of Physics. https://history.aip.org/phn/11607013.html.
- ↑ "Margaret Murnane, Ph.D.". Simons Foundation. https://www.simonsfoundation.org/people/margaret-murnane/.
External links
Source attribution: Biography:Margaret Murnane
