Max Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy

MBI Staff Member – Personal info

Dr. Michael Woerner

michael.woerner(at)mbi-berlin.de
+49 30 6392 1470

C3: Femtosecond Spectroscopy of Solids
Building C, 1.2

Position

  • Head of Department C3 "Femtosecond Spectroscopy on Solids"
  • Coordinator of Project 3.2 "Solids and Nanostructures: Electrons, Spins, and Phonons"
  • Coordinator of Project 3.3 "Transient Structures and Imaging with X-rays"

Research

I am interested in ultrafast and nonlinear phenomena in condensed matter, in particular organic and inorganic solids and nanostructures. To this end, I generate and apply ultrashort pulses in a wide spectral range (THz to hard x-ray) to measure the nonequilibrium dynamics of elementary excitations in solids and the ultrafast structural dynamics of crystalline material. Most recent activities are two-dimensional spectroscopy in the THz frequency range (Figure: two phonon coherences in InSb) and femtosecond x-ray absorption experiments using table top high harmonic sources.

Curriculum vitae

1981-1988 Study of physics at the Technical University (TU) of Munich

1988-1991 PhD Work at TU Munich, Physics Department E11 (Prof. W. Kaiser)

1991 Graduation (Dr. rer. nat.) at the TU

1991-1993 Postdoctoral Researcher at the Physics Department E11, TU Munich

1993-1996 Postdoctoral Researcher at the Max-Born-Institute, Berlin

1997 Postdoctoral Researcher at Bell Laboratories (Lucent), Holmdel, NJ, USA

since 1997 Department head of C3 at the Max-Born-Institute, Berlin

1999 Habilitation at the Humboldt University Berlin

Recent highlight(s)

Electric polarization in the macroscopic world and electrons moving at atomic scales

Wiggling atoms switch the electric polarization of crystals

Quantum Swing - a pendulum that moves forward and backwards at the same time

Amplification of Sound Waves at Extreme Frequencies

Hot means slow: Electron plasma oscillations tuned down with light

The longer the better: Optical long-wavelength pulses generate brilliant ultrashort hard x-ray flashes

MBI Publications

  1. Ultrafast X-ray experiments on structural changes in single crystals of polar molecules

    M. Braun, C. Root, F. J. Lederer, T. E. Schrader, W. Zinth, von Korff Schmising, C., M. Bargheer, T. Elsaesser, M. Woerner

     Applied Physics A 96 (2009) 107-115
  2. Nonlinear terahertz and midinfrared response of n-type GaAs

    M. Woerner, P. Gaal, W. Kuehn, K. Reimann, T. Elsaesser, R. Hey, K. H. Ploog

     Advances in Solid State Physics 47 Springer (2008) 237-249
  3. Ultrafast magnetostriction and phonon-mediated stress in a photoexcited ferromagnet

    von Korff Schmising, C., A. Harpoeth, N. Zhavoronkov, Z. Ansari, C. Aku-Leh, M. Woerner, T. Elsaesser, M. Bargheer, M. Schmidbauer, I. Vrejoiu, D. Hesse, M. Alexe

     Physical Review B 78 (2008) 060404(R)/1-4
  4. Real-time studies of reversible lattice dynamics by femtosecond X-ray diffraction

    von Korff Schmising, C., M. Bargheer, M. Woerner, T. Elsaesser

     Zeitschrift für Kristallographie 223 (2008) 283-291
  5. Ultrafast phase-resolved pump-probe measurements on a quantum cascade laser

    W. Kuehn, W. Parz, P. Gaal, K. Reimann, M. Woerner, T. Elsaesser, T. Müller, J. Darmo, K. Unterrainer, M. Austerer, G. Strasser, L. R. Wilson, J. W. Cockburn, A. B. Krysa, J. S. Roberts

     Applied Physics Letters 93 (2008) 151106/1-3
  6. Carrier-wave rabi flopping on radiatively coupled shallow donor transitions in n-type GaAs

    P. Gaal, W. Kuehn, K. Reimann, M. Woerner, T. Elsaesser, R. Hey, J. S. Lee, U. Schade

     Physical Review B 77 (2008) 235204/1-6
  7. Theory of electron-phonon interactions on nanoscales: semiconductor surfaces and two dimensional electron gases

    N. Buecking, S. Butscher, M. Richter, C. Weber, S. Declair, M. Woerner, K. Reimann, P. Kratzer, M. Scheffler, A. Knorr

     SPIE Proceedings 6892 (2008) 689209 (13 pages)
  8. Femtosekunden-Röntgenbeugung: Schwingende Nanoschichten im Röntgen-Stroboskop

    M. Bargheer, von Korff Schmising, C., M. Woerner, T. Elsaesser

     Physik in unserer Zeit 38 (2007) 60-61
  9. Femtosecond X-ray diffraction on DIABN single crystals

    M. Braun, C. Root, T. E. Schrader, P. Gilch, W. Zinth, M. Bargheer, von Korff Schmising, C., M. Kiel, N. Zhavoronkov, M. Woerner, T. Elsaesser

     Ultrafast Phenomena XV Springer (2007) 725-727
  10. Ultrafast structure and polarization dynamics in nanolayered perovskites studied by femtosecond X-ray diffraction

    von Korff Schmising, C., M. Bargheer, M. Kiel, N. Zhavoronkov, M. Woerner, T. Elsaesser, I. Vrejoiu, D. Hesse, M. Alexe

     Journal of Physics: Conference Series 92 (2007) 012177/1-4