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November 1995 Newsletter
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Chairman's Message November 1995
Dear Colleagues:
On 31 December 1995, the LSTG will have had a membership exceeding 3% of
the total membership of the American Physical Society for two consecutive years.
Thus, in 1996, the LSTG becomes eligible for Divisional status. My first task
as Chair of the LSTG will be to petition the APS Council to change our status.
Once approval is granted, we will hold an election for our first Divisional
Councilor. On behalf of all of the previous Chairs (Carl Collins, Tom McIlrath,
Steve Chu, Bill Stwalley, Rick Freeman, Andy Tam, Dan Grischkowsky, and Carl
Lineberger) and Secretary-Treasurers (Frank Tittel, Norm Kurnit, Wayne Itano,
and John Miller) of the LSTG, I would like to thank you, the members, for your
continuing support and involvement in our activities over the past ten years.
At this juncture, it is perhaps appropriate to review and reflect on our
role in the American Physical Society. The LSTG, soon to be the DLS, has developed
into the focal point for laser science within the Society. It is unique among
the subunits of the Society in that it is both broadly multidisciplinary and
interactive with other professional societies. Our annual meeting, which is
joint with that of the Optical Society of America, includes invited and contributed
papers in chemistry, physics, biosciences, medicine, nonlinear optics, ultrafast
phenomena, and instrumentation. Furthermore, attendees at the joint meeting
come from all of the research sectors -- academe, industry, and government
laboratories. This, I believe, is the paradigm for the future. As a Division,
we will continue to pursue these outreach activities and will continue to encourage
the Society to do so on an even grander scale.
Over the coming months, you will be asked to provide input in a number of
ways, (e.g., you will be asked for suggestions for topics at the annual meeting,
and for nominations for Fellowship in the Society from our Division). My fondest
hope is that we are deluged with replies (although, historically, this has
not been the typical level of response). The LSTG is an instrument of the membership,
and those listed on the masthead are as close as your e-mail -- no envelopes
to address, no stamps to lick. So let us hear from you.
With my very best wishes for the holiday season.
Pat Dehmer
ELECTION RESULTS
We welcome the winners of this fall's election. Paul Houston was elected
Vice Chair. He will succeed to the position of Chair Elect at the close of
the 1996 Annual Meeting, and subsequently become chair in 1997. Michael
Raymer and Naomi Halas were elected as members-at-large.
ROCHESTER THEORY CENTER FOR OPTICAL SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
A new Theory Center of interest to the LSTG membership has been established
at the University of Rochester with funding from the National Science Foundation.
The Center began operation in October. J. H. Eberly is the Center Director.
The Rochester Theory Center (RTC) has several interrelated mandates. The
first is to award a number of Postdoctoral Fellowships (5 or 6 postdocs are
expected to be in residence in steady-state) to highly-qualified theorists
who have graduated recently from US universities, particularly including those
who have carried out their thesis research in fields unrelated to optics, but
who are interested in learning about and working on current challenges in optical
science and technology.
Support
In addition to support for postdoctoral workers, RTC will also provide partial
support for occasional senior visitors, sponsor topical workshops, and foster
exchanges between Center researchers and industrial organizations with common
interests. There are already 10 industrial and governmental organizations that
have tentatively identified common interests with RTC. Cooperative ventures
with other centers, including ITAMP (Harvard-Smithsonian), CUOS (Michigan),
and JILA (Colorado and NIST) are already being discussed.
In the first several months of 1996 RTC will fill several postdoctoral positions.
Postdoctoral fellows will be expected to work with two or more of the senior
members of the center, who are senior scientists and faculty of the departments
of Chemistry, Mechanical Engineering, Physics and Astronomy, the Institute
of Optics and the Laboratory for Laser Energetics at the University of Rochester.
They are: G. P. Agrawal, R. S. Craxton, J. H. Eberly (Center Director), D.
G. Hall, R. S. Knox, L. Mandel, C. J. McKinstrie, S. Mukamel, C. R. Stroud,
Jr., and E. Wolf.
Current Research Areas
Problem areas of current interest to RTC include solitons in fibers, cavity
QED, computer modeling of strong-field laser-matter interactions, opto-electronic
device physics, high-power frequency conversion, X-ray propagation, femtosecond
photophysics, photon pair correlations and quantum phase, molecular and semiconductor
nonlinear optics, instabilities and non-linear wave phenomena, quantum control,
quasi-classical wave packets, and optical processes in nanostructures.
All applicants for RTC postdoctoral positions must have received a doctoral
degree from a US university within the past 3 years. Salaries for Fellows are
in the range $30-$35,000 per year. For information about application procedures,
prospective applicants should send an e-mail inquiry to: secr@rtc.rochester.edu.
DISTINGUISHED TRAVELING LECTURER PROGRAM IN LASER SCIENCE
The Laser Science Topical Group (LSTG) of the American Physical Society
announces the continuance of its sponsorship of a lecture program in Laser
Science. Lecturers will visit selected academic institutions for two days,
during which time they will give a public lecture open to the entire academic
community and meet informally with students and faculty. They may also give
guest lectures in classes related to Laser Science. The purpose of the program
is to bring distinguished scientists to predominantly undergraduate colleges
and universities in order to convey the excitement of Laser Science to undergraduate
students.
Guidelines: LSTG will be responsible for the travel expenses and honorarium
of the lecturer. The host institution will be responsible for the local expenses
of the lecturer and for advertising the public lecture. Recommendations to
the LSTG chair for host institutions will be made by the Selection Committee
after consulting with the lecturers. Priority will be given to those institutions
that are not located in major metropolitan centers and do not have extensive
resources for similar programs.
Lecturers for the 1996-1997 Academic Year:
- Geraldine Richmond, Univ. of Oregon, Dept. of Chemistry. Surface Non-Linear
Optics
- Jagdeep Shah, AT&T Bell Laboratories. Quantum Optics
- Stephen Leone, JILA, Univ. of Colorado. Chemical Physics
- Philip Bucksbaum, Dept. of Physics, Univ. of Michigan. High-Field Laser
Physics
- Bill Phillips, NIST. Atom Cooling and Trapping
Application Procedures: An LSTG member at the prospective host institution
should request a particular lecturer and submit a list of preferred dates.
The member should also provide a brief description of the host institution,
its undergraduate students, and an estimate of the number of students likely
to benefit. To ensure consideration for speakers for the fall of 1996, please
submit an application by January 19. Applications for the Spring of 1997 should
be submitted by June 20.
Send applications to: Dr. John C. Miller, MS 6125, Bldg. 4500S, Rm.
S118, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, PO Box 2008, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, phone
423-574-6239; fax 423-576-4407; e-mail millerjc@ornl.gov
NEWS FLASH: MORE MEMBERS ARE ELIGIBLE FOR FELLOWSHIP
LSTG has made many distinguished contributions to the list of APS Fellows,
including the six elected this year and to be announced in November, but there
could be more!
The number of LSTG nominations chosen to be forwarded to the APS for
confirmation as Fellow in a given year is typically in the range of five
to ten. This depends on the good judgment of the nominators in the first place
and also on the Divisional Committee on Fellows headed by the LSTG Vice-Chair,
Paul Houston, but the Committee can do nothing without nominations. This is
where LSTG members must come into the picture. (Continued on page 7)
STUDENT TRAVEL GRANTS
Awards of up to $700
The LSTG is pleased to continue its program to support student travel to
LSTG-sponsored meetings. A limited number of grants for travel and living expenses,
up to $700, are available to graduate students who are LSTG members and who
are authors or co-authors on an oral or poster paper at the QELS or ILS-XI
meetings. To make these funds as widely available as possible, some priority
will be given to requests for a lower level of support and to distribution
of these grants to students from different institutions.
Applicants should submit a letter stating their estimated need for travel
funds, including commitment of institutional support, if any, attached to a
copy of the submitted abstract on which they are the first author, and a letter
of nomination from a member of the LSTG. Please list daytime phone number,
fax number, e-mail address, and social security number. Applicants are required
to fax or e-mail their acceptance letter or attach it to the application upon
receiving the official notice from OSA. Only one award will be given to a research
group. If it is likely that the paper cannot be given without financial
support, the student should indicate whether the paper should be withdrawn
if this request for funds cannot be met. Checks will be issued at the meeting.
Hotel accommodations will be covered at up to half the conference rate for
a double room.
The nominator should certify that the applicant is a full-time graduate student,
and, in the case of foreign students, that they have a student visa valid through
the meeting dates. The applications will be evaluated by the selection committee
of J-J. Song (Chair), I. Abella, N. Halas, and S. Leone. Applications should
be sent to Dr. John C. Miller, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Bethel Valley
Road, Bldg. 4500-South, MS-6125, PO Box 2008, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6125. Fax:
423-576-4407, email: millerjc@ornl.gov.
The deadline for submitting applications is March 8, 1996.
NOTICE TO LSTG AUTHORS AND EDITORS
The Executive Committee has authorized a new policy of providing notices
in the LSTG newsletter about new books by LSTG members as a two-way benefit
of LSTG membership. Both LSTG authors and the LSTG community should benefit
from widespread information about new books related to LSTG interest areas.
All LSTG members who are new authors (copyright 1994 or 1995 and later) are
invited to send a letter or fax showing the copyright page, the title page,
table of contents, and preface of their new book to the LSTG Newsletter Editor.
The author is also invited to write one or two short sentences about the purpose
of the new book; these will appear with the notice.
This is an experiment that will be evaluated after a suitable period. The
Executive Committee will be pleased to receive comments and suggestions about
it. Comments can be addressed to Roger Becker, the Newsletter Editor, or to
John C. Miller, LSTG Secretary-Treasurer. If this service is valued by the
membership, the same idea might be extended to new software releases intended
for instructional purposes, and perhaps other similar educational aids.
SYMPOSIA FOR ILS XII
Lasers in Physics, Paul Julienne
Near-Field Optical Microscopy I, concepts & techniques, Lon Goldner,
NIST
Near-Field Optical Microscopy II, applications. Lon Goldner
BEC I, Bose-Einstein Condensation Theory and Experiment, Dan Heinzen, Univ.
Texas
BEC II, Ultracold Collisions-suppression and Relation to BEC, Dan Heinzen
Dynamics of wave packets and Rydberg States, Nick Bigelow, Univ. Rochester
Atomic Manipulation and Interferometry, Steve Bolston, NIST
High-Field Coherent Control, Ken Kulander, LLNL
Lasers in Chemistry, Giacinto Scoles
FM Spectroscopy, Marsha Lester, Univ. Penn
Chemical Applications of Optical Cavities, Alec Wodtke, UCSB
Surface Photochemistry, Ian Harrison, Univ. Virginia
Laser Spectroscopy at Very Low Temperatures, W. C. Stwalley, Univ. Conn
Vibrational Effects in Electron Transfer Reactions, Anne Myers, Univ. Rochester
Physics of Laser Sources, Howard Milchberg
Table Top X-Ray Lasers, Jorge Rocca, Colorado State Univ.
Advances in Fiber Lasers, Curtis Meryuk, Univ. of Maryland
Advances in Ultrashort Pulse High Energy Lasers, Henry Kapteyn, Washington
State Univ.
New Concepts in Lasers, to be announced
Nonlinear Optics and Ultrafast Phenomena, Andrew Weiner
Coherent nonlinear spectroscopy of distorted systems and nanostructures,
Stephan Koch, Marburg Univ.
Single (or few) Cycle Optical Pulses, Andy Weiner, Purdue Univ.
Picosecond and parametric sources for the Mid-Infrared, Rana Beigung, U.
Kaisarslautern
Novel Types of Optical Solutions, Ysaron Slibergerg, Weizmann Institute
Laser Applications, Peter Delfyett
Lasers in Telecommunications High Speed, WCM Arrays, Ni-Op Temp., Patrick
LiKamWe, CREOL
Lasers in Optical Data Storage 2-Photon Absorption, Spectral Hole Burn, Tom
Mossberg, Univ. Oregon
Lasers in Medicine: Compact Sources, Imaging and Diagnostics, R. R. Alfano,
CCNY
Material Processing "small green" lasers in Printing, Laser-Aided Manufacture,
Arvinda Kar, CREOL
IMPRESSIONS OF UNDERGRADUATE SUMMER RESEARCH
The advisors of the undergraduates participating in LSTG's summer research
grant program are uniformly happy with the results. Students helped build and
assemble laboratory equipment. More importantly, the research vitalized the
educational programs of the schools.
At Fort Lewis College Jared Wilson used a pulsed dye laser to excite resonances
on selected states of nickel vapor. One application of the work was to develop
a sensitive probe for nickel, which is highly toxic. Nickel has several low-lying
states which make it possible to infer the original temperature from the distribution
of the states of the ablated material. Jared's advisor, Ron Estler, emphasized
the wider educational benefits of his work. "Here we think research is inseparable
from undergraduate education. Anything that promotes undergraduate students
getting into the lab is very good. This program let me tap into our physics
majors." At Centenary College Juan Rodriquez had similar comments. His student,
Valerie Zabel, measured emission spectra of biological compounds such as vitamin
B12 and anthracene. Work was done in the gas phase to separate out environmental
effects on the response of the molecules. "Having Valerie was definitely
a pleasure. She really got into it as if it were her own project. She did computer
interfacing at a very fundamental level. Now we have an improved spectrometer.
When other students see that someone is having a good time they also want to
get involved in summer projects. Pretty soon you develop a culture in which
research is desired by students. Students develop a real appreciation for research".
The admiration of the students for the faculty was reciprocated. At Fort
Collins Kyle Kung found his interaction with his advisor Nancy Levinger
very rewarding. "I enjoyed working with an advisor who gave me a lot
of room." Kyle filtered a directed white light source pumped by a sapphire
laser to study the resonant second harmonic generation from organic films on
water. Dave Robertson at Lawrence University also stressed the personnel interaction
with his advisor, John Brandenberger. "I liked doing different things;
I liked the variety and the collaboration with the faculty. My advisor talked
to me about two hours a day. It blew me away." David used a diode laser to
measure the absorption line shape of transitions in rubidium vapor. He found
that the extent theory had failed to account for the population of excited
states at high laser intensities.
Hard Knocks
The first thing the students learned about was frustration. At the University
of the Redlands Jeb Adams spent a long time working on an old YAG-pumped dye
laser, replacing parts. "The dye was a mess, it leaked all over the floor." Jared
Wilson found that frustration called for adjustment. "It takes discipline to
deal with the setbacks that you encounter in any lab environment." Valerie
Zabel shared this sentiment. "I had never done long-term research before. Programming
was very difficult. There is so much trial and error. It was interesting to
see how time consuming it really is. It was quite an eye opener for me." In
the end, though, she found it to be well worth while. "By working with Dr.
Rodriguez I learned a lot about the joys and heartaches of research. It is
a long and difficult process that never runs according to plan. I think that
is the beauty of it." Dave Robertson agreed. "Working eight hours a day is
different from taking a class; it's a more mature experience, you are trying
to solve real problems.
The complexity of research work added a new dimension beyond their previous
experience. Valerie found this stimulating. "There were so many mirrors
to guide the laser beam. It reminded me of a rat in a maze. I enjoyed it a
lot." It was also demanding. One thing that impressed Jared was "the need to
constantly think about everything that is going on, to develop an awareness
of the whole experiment."
Rewards
The upshot was the reward of accomplishment. Kyle concluded that "the
subject is interesting; it's given me the drive to keep working. To see the
results come out of a project that you've built up is very exciting. Nothing
feels better." Jeb did not let the spilled dye on the floor get to him. "I
had a great time. This is what I wanted to do. I had never worked on the inside
of a laser before; I just saw pretty beams come out. I never did anything as
intense as trying to fix a logic board." Valerie would like to see experience
shared more widely. "I hope everyone gets a chance to do research. It
is a lot of fun." She communicated her interest to many non technical people.
Jeb did this in a formal setting. "We had a poster session at school which
drew the attention of a lot of students who were not science-oriented." Kyle
enjoyed showing other undergraduates how the equipment worked and relating
it to classroom lectures.
Their enthusiasm has propelled several students into continuing kindred work
at the graduate level. Kyle, who plans to go into physical chemistry with a
specialty in laser spectroscopy has made his career plans based on his experience. "This
has really focused my career path." At the University of the Redlands Jeffrey
Bartz observed that "LSTG supported a student (Adams) who had an interest in
science but didn't know if he wanted to do research. It's prompted him to go
on to graduate school." Jeb added "It made a difference. I had never had a
good lab experience before. This gave me a chance to do something I could do
well. I'm not afraid of the lab anymore." He will soon go on to graduate school
in chemistry. Dave Robertson found that "it helped me to know what area of
physics I want to go into (atomic physics). Before I had some doubts about
graduate school; now I am applying to several schools." Ron Estler noted that "the
project cemented some of Jared's ideas about what he wanted to do and what
he didn't want to do. Both are important. If students learn where they fit,
that's good. Jared did a lot of software development, and is still doing independent
research. Students learning from other students is even better. We have rural
students. Albuquerque is the nearest town of any size. Many have dropped out,
then all of a sudden they get turned on. Usually they turn out to be terrific
role models for the younger students. If they learn that they can be part of
the real world, they are almost shocked to think that they are working on something
that other people care about."
News Flash(Continued from page 3)
The Executive Committee is urging all LSTG members to think whether a colleague
deserving of the rank of Fellow comes to mind. If you are uncertain about a
colleague's status, consult the APS Membership Directory, where an asterisk
identifies Fellows.
Any member can nominate any other member, and the supporting documentation
is not difficult to assemble. The deadline for a nomination and supporting
letters to reach the APS, in time for LSTG consideration, is almost six months
away (April 1, 1996) providing plenty of opportunity for action. All of the
required information is available on a WWW page and easily found via:
http://aps.org/felowship/fellform.html
A phone call to Ken Cole of the APS at 301209-3268 will also work. Joe
Eberly CALENDAR
International Conference on Lasers '95, 48 Dec 1995, Charleston, SC.
703-642-5835; fax 703-642-5838.
Photonics West, 27 Jan - 2 Feb 1996, San Jose Convention Center, San
Jose, CA. Call SPIE at 360-676-3290 or 800-483-9034; fax 360-647-1445. e-mail
PW96@spie.org
Advanced Solid-State Lasers Topical Meeting, 31 Jan-3 Feb 1996, San
Francisco, CA. Sponsored by OSA/IEEE-LEOS. Technical meeting, tabletop exhibit.
European Optical Society Topical Meeting on Materials for Nonlinear Optics,
14-18 Jan 1996, Val Thorens, France. Contact: F. Kajzar, DEIN/SPE/GCO, Bat
451, CE Saclay, 91191 Gif-Sur-Yvette, France.
Advanced Solid-State Lasers Topical Meeting, Jan 31-Feb 3, 1996, San
Francisco, CA. Technical Meeting, Tabletop Exhibit. Sponsored by OSA/IEEE-LEOS.
Orlando Topical Meetings, 18-22 Mar, 1996. Orlando, FL. Technical
Meetings, Tabletop Exhibit.
Spring Topical Meetings, Apr 29 - 3 May, 1996, Boston, MA. Technical
Meeting, Tabletop Exhibit, Holography, Diffractive Optics and Micro-Optics,
Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography, Optical Fabrication and Testing, Integrated
Photonics Research (sponsored by OSA/IEEE-LEOS).
Ultrafast Phenomena, 28 May - Jun 1, 1996. Hotel Del Coronado, San
Diego, CA. OSA Conference Services, 202-223-0920; fax 202-416-6100, e-mail:
confserv@osa.org. OpticsNet: URL http://192.239.36.3 or http://www.osa.org
Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (CLEO'96), 2-7 Jun, 1996,
Anaheim, CA. Co-located with the Quantum Electronics and Laser Science Conference
(QELS '96). Sponsored by: IEEE-LEOS/OSA. Technical Meeting, Short Courses,
Technical Exhibit.
Quantum Electronics and Laser Science Conference (QELS '96), 2-7 Jun,
Anaheim, Ca. Co-located with the Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (CLEO
'96). Sponsored by: APS-LSTG/IEEE-LEOS/OSA. Technical Meeting.
Laser Interactions with Materials, Gordon Research Conference, 9-14
Jun 1996, Holderness School, Plymouth, NH. Tom Dickinson, Chair, Washington
State University JTD@WSU.EDU. 509-335-4914; fax 509-335-7816
Summer Topical Meetings, 7-12 Jul, 1996, Maui, Hawaii. Technical Meetings,
Tabletop Exhibit. Sponsored by OSA/IEEE-LEOS and OSA/IEEE-LEOS/SPIE.
Optical Amplifiers and Their Applications Topical Meeting, 10-13 Jul,
1996, Monterey, CA. Sponsored by OSA/IEEE-LEOS. Technical Meeting, Tabletop
Exhibit.
20th International Quantum Electronics Conference, 14-19 Jul, Sydney,
Australia. Sponsored by ACQE. (For more information contact: Prof. J. Piper,
School of Physics, Macquane Univ., NSW 2109, 02 805 8977.) OSA is a cooperating
society. Technical Meeting.
CLEO/EUROPE, 8-13 Sep, 1996, Hamburg, Germany. Co-located with the
European Quantum Electronics Conference (EQEC). Sponsored by EPS/IEEE-LEOS/OSA,
in cooperation with EOS. Contact: fax IOP at +44 (0) 171 823 1051; for technical
information: fax IEEE-LEOS at 908/562-8434; for exhibits: fax OSA at 202-416-6100.
Technical Meeting, Short Courses, Technical Exhibit.
OSA '96 80th Anniversary Annual Meeting, 20-25 Oct., Rochester, NY.
Co-located with ILS-XII and Optics and Imaging in the Information Age. Abstract
Deadline: April 24, 1996. Technical Meeting, Tutorials, Engineering Tutorials,
Engineering "How To" Program, Short Courses, and Technical Exhibit (Technical
Exhibit sponsored by: OSA/Photonics Spectra).
Interdisciplinary Laser Science Conference (ILS-XII), 20-25 Oct, 1996,
Rochester, NY. Co-located with the OSA Annual Meeting and Optics and Imaging
in the Information Age. Abstract Deadline: April 24, 1996. (For further information
contact OSA). Sponsored by APS-LSTG, in cooperation with OSA. Technical Meeting.
Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (CLEO '97), 18-23 May, 1997,
Baltimore, MD. Co-located with the Quantum Electronics and Laser Science Conference
(QELS '97). Sponsored by: IEEE-LEOS/OSA in cooperation with EPS-QEO/JQEJG.
Technical Meeting, Short Courses, Technical Exhibit.
Quantum Electronics and Laser Science Conference (QELS'97), 18-23
May, 1997, Baltimore, MD. Co-located with the Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics
(CLEO '97). Sponsored by APS-LSTG/IEEE-LEOS/OSA. Technical Meeting.
Deadlines
Distinguished Lecturer Applications (Fall 1996): 19 January 1996.
1996 Undergraduate Summer Research Applications: 10 February 1996
LSTG Student Travel Grants for CLEO/QELS: 8 March 1996.
APS Fellow Nominations: 1 April 1996
ILS-XI Abstracts: 24 April 1996.
Distinguished Lecturer Applications (Spring 1997): 20 June 1996.
ILS-XI Student Travel Grants: 5 July 1996.
CLEO '97 Abstracts: 27 November 1996
Summer Research Summaries
This year eight undergraduates participated in the LSTG summer research program:
Jared Wilson of Fort Lewis College, Durango, CO. Advisor: Ron Estler. Using
Resonance-Ionization Mass Spectrometry, Wilson investigated the absorption
spectrum of nickel atoms.
Kyle Kung of Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO. Advisor: Nancy
Levinger. Kung used resonant-enhanced second harmonic generation to investigate
dye aggregation at water-solvent interfaces.
Valerie Zabel of Centenary College, Shreveport, LA. Advisor: Juan Rodriguez.
Zabel studied the temperature dependence (300700 K) of emission specta.
Jeb Adams of University of Redlands, Redlands, CA. Advisor: Jeffry Bartz.
Adams developed apparatus for the study of the energy disposal of laser-excited
cobalt complexes.
Dave Robertson of Lawrence University Appleton, WI. Advisor: John Brandenberger.
Using saturated absorption laser spectroscopy, Robertson studied the lineshape
of rubidium hyperfine transitions.
Paul Mugabi of Gettysburg College, Gettysberg, PA. Advisor: Timothy Good.
Mugaby constructed a laser-induced fluorescence apparatus for the study of
plasma wave particle interactions.
Matthew Lakin of Georgetown University, Washington, DC. Advisor: Janice Hicks. Using
surface second harmonic generation, Latkin studied HCl and HOCl adsorbed on
ice crystals.
Geoffrey Park of Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA. Advisor: Carl Grossman.
Park set up an experiment to measure the nonlinear coefficients of DIVA.
MINUTES OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING OF THE LASER SCIENCE TOPICAL
GROUP (LSTG)
SEPTEMBER 13, 1995
PORTLAND, OREGON
The meeting was called to order by the LSTG Chair, Carl Lineberger, at 12:00
noon in the Red Lion Lloyd Center Hotel. The meeting was held in conjunction
with the Interdisciplinary Laser Science Conference (ILS-11) and the annual
meeting of the Optical Society of America (OSA). Other Executive Committee
members present were Chair-Elect Patricia Dehmer, Vice-Chair Joseph Eberly,
Secretary-Treasurer John Miller, Past-Chair Dan Grischkowsky, and Members-at-Large
Anthony Johnson, William Cooke, John Weiner, Wendell Hill, III, and Paul Kleiber
(Carl Weiman was absent).
Thomas McIlrath, William Stwalley , and Mike Perry (for Roger Falcone), representing
the Joint Council on Quantum Electronics, were present as non-voting ex-officio
members of the Executive Committee. Nasser Peyghambarian, Marsha Lester, and
Jaqdeep Shah represented the ILS Conference Committee. Geraldine Richmond,
Chair of the ILS Undergraduate Summer Research Program, was present. Mary Pat
Paris, Membership Manager of the American Physical Society, was present by
invitation.
Membership
Paris, APS Membership Manager, presented summary material on LSTG membership,
renewals, and overlap with other APS subunits and briefly discussed them. As
of August 31, 1995, the LSTG membership was 1,165 representing 3.2% of the
total APS count of 36,169. Both numbers should increase until the end of the
calendar year when the numbers become official. The LSTG percentage is expected
to remain above 3%. Grischkowsky reported that he has arranged an additional
273 mail solicitations to potential new members in a continuation of his membership
drive.
Division Status
The LSTG is expected to be eligible to become the Division of Laser Science
(DLS) following verification of its membership (as greater than 3% of the total
APS membership) as of December 31, 1995. Division status would become official
following a vote at the APS Council Meeting, May, 5-6 in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The APS has proposed that the new DLS elect its division councilor during its
normal fall election cycle, the appointment becoming official on January 1,
1997. Dehmer and Lineberger expressed dissatisfaction with the arrangement,
pointing out that the DLS would have no voting power for all of 1996. Dehmer
explained that the APS constitution requires that councilors be elected in
the year prior to serving but that this provision was enacted for other reasons.
Dehmer will discuss with the APS the possibility of holding a special election
of the DLS in January to elect a councilor who would then have voting rights
immediately. A change in the APS constitution would presumably be required.
Finances
Miller presented a summary (see attached) of the LSTG financial status for
FY 95 (ending June 31, 1995). LSTG income was $60,560 and expenses totaled
$68,978 leaving an ending balance of $104,250. The largest expenses were for
the major LSTG programs as follows: Undergraduate Summer Research Program ($24,000),
Distinguished Traveling Lecture Program ($10,286), Graduate Student Travel
Grants ($8752), and ILS-10 ($9770).
Newsletter
Miller summarized a report from Roger Becker, newsletter editor, and thanked
contributors for their efforts. The establishment of a "home page" on the Internet
was discussed. Paris pointed out that many other subunits had home pages nested
within the APS home page. It was pointed out that the major LSTG program descriptions,
(for instance, the Distinguished Traveling Lecture Program (DTL) and the ILS
registration and symposium information) could also be posted. Finally, the
issue of electronic posting/delivery of the newsletter was briefly discussed.
Cooke accepted the challenge of developing an LSTG home page.
Distinguished Traveling Lecture Program
Lineberger announced a slate of five candidates for the next round of DTL
speakers. An increased number of speakers is intended to provide more balance
in subject matter and geography, thus allowing more scheduling flexibility.
It also reduces the burden somewhat on speakers and allows more individuals
to be honored by appointment as DTL speakers. The total number of lectures
and the budget would, however, remain the same as in the past. A motion to
authorize $15,000 for FY 96 was passed.
Student Travel Grants
Miller summarized the status of the program. Eleven students were supported
(up to $600) to attend the Portland meeting. Discussion followed on ways to
encourage more students to attend our meetings. McIlrath reported that student
attendance was down from last year. Dehmer pointed out that DAMOP makes special
arrangements for inexpensive lodging (three or more to a room) and can thus
subsidize more students for the same money. Grischkowsky proposed a change
to the requirement that the student must present a paper. He suggested that
it be eased to require only that the student be a co-author on a paper. He
pointed out that simply attending a major conference is a significant professional
opportunity for a graduate student. A motion to ease the "presenter requirement" was
passed.
Joint Council for Quantum Electronics
McIlrath summarized recent deliberations on changing the format of the OSA
meeting to greatly reduce the number of parallel sessions and increase the
size of the poster session. Any decisions on this reorganization would not
be implemented before the 1997 meeting. The implication of these changes to
the co-located ILS meeting was briefly discussed.
Interdisciplinary Laser Science (ILS) Conference
Peyghambarian reported that support for ILS-11 included $5000 from NSF, $5000
from the Army Research Office, $500 from Lambda Physik, and approximately $12,000
from the LSTG. The NSF monies were earmarked for student support only. Discussion
ensued on focusing future fund-raising efforts on students rather than invited
speakers.
Lester reported on progress toward ILS-12 in Rochester, New York, October
20-25, 1996. The program committee was in the process of selecting symposia
in a concurrent meeting. Several people suggested increased advertising via
the LSTG Newsletter and the Internet in order to increase awareness and attendance.
A motion to provide $14,000 to support ILS-12 was passed. Richart Slusher was
named as the Program Vice-Chair for ILS.
NEW EDITOR WANTED!
A new editor is needed to take over the newsletter now that we are a division.
Contact Roger Becker, 513-229-3964, becker@udri.udayton.edu.
or call
John Miller, 423-574-6239,
millerjc@ornl.gov
ASK YOUR COLLEAGUES TO
JOIN THE LASER SCIENCE TOPICAL GROUP
The Laser Science Topical Group (LSTG) is on the verge of becoming a division.
It is the subunit of the American Physical Society (APS) specifically concerned
with the use of lasers in science, the application of lasers in technology,
and the interests of the laser community within the APS.
The LSTG
Promotes laser interests within the APS and represents such interests with
other societies.
Sponsors awards and educational programs, including a Distinguished Traveling
Lecturer Program aimed at four-year institutions.
Cosponsors the Interdisciplinary Laser Science (ILS) and Quantum Electronics
and Laser Science (QELS) Conferences.
Benefits of Membership
Summer research fellowships for undergraduate students sponsored by LSTG
members.
Travel grants to the ILS and QELS for graduate students sponsored by LSTG
members.
The LSTG Newsletter, a valuable source of information related to your profession.
A route to APS Fellowship.
Influence on the Laser Science actions in the APS.
How to Join
If you are already an APS member, check the LSTG on your APS renewal form
and include the additional $6 with your dues. If you have already renewed your
APS membership for the year beginning 1 July 1996, use the form below. If you
are not yet an APS member, contact the APS at the address given below
or call the APS Membership Department at 301-209-3280. For more information,
contact Dr. John C. Miller, LSTG Secretary-Treasurer, by phone (423-5746239)
or fax (423-576-4407).
Use the form below only if you have already sent in your APS renewal form.
I am a member of the APS for Fiscal Year 1996. I wish to join the Laser Science
Topical Group.
Name: ______________________________________________________
Address: ______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
MAIL TO: The American Physical Society
Membership Department
One Physics Ellipse
College Park, MD 20740-3844
