The Ruđer Bošković Institute organizes a cycle of popular-scientific lectures on the award of Nobel Prize in Natural Sciences. The first lecture in this year’s cycle was held by a colleague
Dr. Ticijana Ban under the title: “From laser to Nobel Prize”
This year’s Nobel Prize celebrates lasers and their exceptional importance for our society. The award was shared by Arthur Ashkin for the invention of optical tweezers and its application in biology, and Gérard Mouro and Donna Strickland to create ultra-short pulses of great power.
Optical tweezers are based on the radiation force and have enabled the capture, displacement and control of the particles without their damage. Ashkin has applied optical tweezers to the study of viruses and bacteria, thus opening a new area of research in biophysics and biology. The second half of the award was awarded for the Chirped Pulse Amplification (CPA) technique, which enabled the generation of very powerful pulse lasers, which are nowadays largely used in medical research, materials industry and new energy sources.
Dr. Ban presented the winners of this year’s Nobel Prize in his lecture and explained the importance of their discoveries for science and application in everyday life.
