Quantum light source boosts attosecond science

Attosecond light pulses, which last for quintillionths (10–18) of a second, can be used to probe the dynamics of matter on incredibly short timescales1. Since they were first demonstrated, these light sources have driven advances in fields from physics and chemistry to materials science. Attosecond light pulses are generally produced using a high-intensity laser. Writing in Nature, Jiang et al.2 report a quantum light source that behaves like a classical laser that is 20 times more intense. They show that this quantum light source can be used to achieve the first step in the process of generating attosecond light pulses.

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-01324-y

References Agostini, P. Rev. Mod. Phys. 96, 030501 (2024). Jiang, Z. et al. Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-026-10485-9 (2026). Mouloudakis, G. & Lambropoulos, P. Phys. Rev. A 97, 053413 (2018). Mollow, B. R. Phys. Rev. A 12, 1919 (1975). Stenquist, A., Bruhnke, J. N., Zapata, F. & Dahlström, J. M. Rep. Prog. Phys. 88, 080502 (2025). Yi, S. et al. Phys. Rev. X 15, 011023 (2025). Iskhakov, T. Sh., Pérez, A. M., Spasibko, K. Yu., Chekhova, M. V. & Leuchs, G. Opt. Lett. 37, 1919–1921 (2012). Stammer, P. et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 132, 143603 (2024). Rivera-Dean, J., Petrovic, L., Lewenstein, M. & Stammer, P. Rep. Prog. Phys. 89, 047901 (2026). Download references

Competing Interests The author declares no competing interests.

Subjects