Progress in femtochemistry and femtobiology

• Published in: Science China. Physics, mechanics & astronomy Vol. 54; no. 12; pp. 2103 - 2108
• Main Authors: Wang, ShuFeng, Gong, QiHuang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Heidelberg SP Science China Press 01.12.2011; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Astronomy; Biological; Chemical bonds; Chemical reactions; Classical and Continuum Physics; Dynamical systems; Dynamics; Enzymes; Femtochemistry; Femtosecond; Focusing; Hydration; Observations and Techniques; Optics; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Review; Time; Vision systems; 光学方法; 化学反应; 时间尺度; 生物系统; 电子动力学; 结构动力学; 视觉系统; 飞秒; ultrafast electron diffraction; coherent control; femtosecond; protein; attosecond
• ISSN: 1674-7348; 1869-1927
• DOI: 10.1007/s11433-011-4563-y

Femtoscience offers a unique way to understand the dynamics in physics, chemistry and biology. This subject focuses on the process happening at femto-to pico-second time scale by femtosecond optical methods. Widely used in chemistry it reveals chemical reactions, including bond breaking, forming, and stretching, which happens at an ultrafast time scale. Femtoscience is also important in the biological system, for example, light harvesting system and vision system. Femtoscience in physics is also widely used, but it is not studied in this paper. Instead, we report new advances in femtochemistry and femtobiology, including structural dynamics, coherent control, enzyme function dynamics and hydration in the protein system. We also introduce attosecond science, focusing on electron dynamics at an extreme short time scale.