IOF RAS (Prokhorov Institute of General Physics)

Institute of General Physics. A.M. Prokhorov of the Russian Academy of Sciences - a research institution.

Areas of scientific activity

As of July 2018, the main areas of scientific activity of the institute:

• laser physics and optics;
• quantum electronics;
• integral optics;
• technology of new materials;
• physics of the condensed state of matter;
• surface physics;
• micro- and nanoelectronics;
• plasma physics and controlled fusion;
• hydrophysics, including ocean acoustics and nonlinear acoustic diagnostics;
• laser medicine and ecology.

History

2025: Development of supercontinum generation technology. It opens up new horizons for quantum computing

Russian and Chinese scientists have created a new method for generating supercontinum based on the amplification of soliton molecules - related groups of ultrashort light pulses. The technology opens up opportunities for the development of quantum computers, interferometry and optical devices. The study was conducted by specialists from the Institute of General Physics. A.P. Prokhorov RAS, Moscow State Technical University named after N.E. Bauman and Harbin Polytechnic University. The findings are published in the journal Optics and Laser Technology in late May 2025.

According to the press service of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the developed fiber laser with erbium ions generates powerful radiation in the range from 1400 to 1700 nanometers with high stability and coherence. The power generated by the laser beam was 152 milliwatts, which is three times higher than the indicators of similar systems.

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Фото: new.ras.ru

Soliton molecules are bound groups of ultrashort light pulses moving as a whole at a certain distance from each other. Physicists have learned to form complex structures based on them with a controlled number of pulses from 3 to 10.

The created plant stably generates a given number of pulses in the mode of soliton molecules. The duration of the received pulses is 509 femtoseconds, and the distance between them is 2.64 picoseconds. The technology makes it possible to create compact sources of coherent supercontinum with a comb structure.

The new approach eliminates the need to use expensive high-linearity fibers - optical fibers that amplify and change the light passing through them. In such materials, powerful pulses often break down into many low-power pulses, resulting in a loss of supercontinum coherence.

The developed technology retains a clear structure of pulses without subsequent division and ensures high quality of the light signal. Devices generate powerful radiation consisting of narrow, equally spaced optical lines with frequency range from near to medium infrared radiation.^[1]

2024: The creation of the world's first hollow light guide lasers. They will help create chips

On June 25, 2024, it became known that Russian scientists from the Institute of General Physics named after A.M. Prokhorov RAS for the first time in the world developed lasers based on hollow light guides. This achievement opens up new possibilities for the creation of high-precision devices, including for the production of microcircuits.

The new technology allows you to generate laser radiation in special devices made of quartz glass - hollow light guides. These are thin "tubes" with a reflective microstructure that can significantly increase the power of existing fiber lasers.

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Фото: Unsplash

According to the publication, the project manager, senior researcher at the institute, Alexei Gladyshev, noted that this study is the world's first demonstration of laser generation in hollow light guides. This discovery will allow in the future to generate laser pulses, the power of which is thousands of times higher than the threshold of destruction in conventional glass-core devices.

Scientists filled the hollow light guide with a mixture of inert helium and xenon gases, creating an optical resonator. The light guide was then irradiated with powerful microwave pulses, which led to the ignition of the gas discharge and the emergence of laser radiation.

The new technology makes it possible to efficiently convert laser radiation from the near infrared to the medium, which is especially important for analyzing the chemical composition of substances. This opens up wide prospects for applications in various fields, including the creation of microcircuits.

According to Vadim Veiko, professor at the Institute of Laser Technologies at ITMO University, quoted by the publication, this discovery could give new life to gas-discharge lasers, significantly expanding the capabilities of laser technologies in microelectronics, diagnostics and other fields. However, to realize the full potential of the new technology, a number of technical difficulties must be overcome, in particular, to increase the mechanical strength and flexibility of light guides.^[2]

2019: Physicists at RAS and MIPT identify type of quasiparticles in semiconductor carbon nanotubes

On December 5, 2019 MIPT , it was reported that scientists from the Prokhorov Institute of General Physics RAS and MIPT together with colleagues investigated the effect of "traps" on the optical properties of carbon nanotubes. When treated with hydrochloric acid, individual hydrogen atoms remain on the surface of the tubes. They do not form chemical bonds with the surface, and, therefore, do not introduce defects into the structure of the nanotube. These atoms serve as "traps" - a quasi-particle that falls into their zone of influence cannot "escape" (becomes localized). Based on the data methods obtained, spectroscopy physicists came to the conclusion that an exciton (consisting of an electron and a "hole") and a trion (exciton, which was joined by another hole or electron) fell into the "trap." More. here

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