Assistant Professor of Physics at Kansas State University, Carlos Trallero, has been conferred two highly acclaimed national grants for his research that will enable a more in-depth understanding of the rudimentary laws of nature at the quantum level.
Carlos trallero picture
The grants included about $200,000 from an Air Force Office of Scientific Research Defense University Instrumentation Program grant and a about $1 million National Science Foundation Major Research Instrumentation grant. They are two of the very limited instrumentation grants awarded to physicists in the nation and Trallero achieved the feat of obtaining both in the same year.
He intends to buy a high-intensity tunable femtosecond laser with the funds of the grant. Trallero, who does research at the James R. Macdonald Laboratory, said that he appreciated the recognition and added that they intend to create an excellent laser source at Kansas State University. He stated that the institution is one of the foremost in research globally and hopes that buying the new laser will enable the team to conduct many experiments that are hindered by the current laser. The new laser would help in conducting improved research.
Trallero will use the unique laser to do research in molecular physics, especially in the attosecond science and ultrafast physics sectors. He would like to gain more knowledge of how atoms and molecules change in fast time scales. The new laser assembly will permit researchers to analyze a new kind of laser light that is used in very few laboratories around the globe.
The university has come up with $500,000 for developing the infrastructure and refurbishing the current Macdonald Laboratory in readiness for the new laser source.