Founded on September 21, 1992.
Its principal study areas are: both fundamental (theoretical and experimental) and applied research into low-energy atomic and nuclear physics, physics of electronic and ionic collisions, physical and quantum electronics, non-linear optics; developing new methods to study and produce novel devices and optical materials for functional and quantum electronics.
Research achievements of the international level:
Resonant nature of near-threshold excitation of atom and ion energy levels by electron impact was discovered. It was demonstrated that, alongside with cascade transitions, short-lived (t=10-13–10-15 s) states of negative ions – ‘resonances’ – play an important role in the excitation of atomic energy levels: their spontaneous decay from the excited states into a free electron and an atom (ion) results in extra population of the levels. Further studies showed this ‘resonance’ phenomenon to be universal, observed both in elastic scattering of electrons by atoms, molecules and ions, and in electron interaction with a solid surface. Using photon and electron spectroscopy techniques for Mg, Cd, Hg, K, Cs atoms, threshold effects were found and a new phenomenon in atomic physics was discovered – the interaction between an electron removed from the atom due to autoionizing and a scattered electron, which results in the appearance and shift of a structure at the energy dependences of scattering cross-sections. The data obtained were accounted for theoretically within diagonalization method in the perturbation theory and hyperspherical coordinate method.
The mechanism of ring-shape generation of bismuth-vapour laser was substantiated and a photodissociative laser on its dimers was produced. Parameters of the plasma jet on the mixture of inert gases with halogen-containing agents were determined, which enables continuous generation on excimer molecules to be achieved.
A technology was worked out and high-grade paratellurite crystals grown (acoustic wave velocity along the [110] direction being 616 m/s, acousto-optical figure of merit М2 with respect to molten quartz being 7.93 .10-16 s3/g). A technology was developed to produce undoped and doped lithium tetraborate – a luminescent material for X-ray, gamma and neutron radiation dosimetry. The materials are tissue-equivalent, have linear characteristics and broad operating dose ranges. Produced were protective, anti-reflective and light-dividing multilayer thin-film gradient structures based on As2S3 and GeS2 chalcogenides, for optical elements of industrial СО2 lasers operating at 10.6 hm wavelength (99% transmittance).
A technology was developed to produce semiconductor and ferroelectric materials in nano-crystalline state, embedded in glass matrices; their physical properties due to composition, size, matrix material were studied to construct electronic elements on their base.
High-optical-quality single crystals of paratellurite (up to 60 mm in diameter and up to 40 mm long) were grown.
Single crystals of lithium tetraborate were grown; they can be used in dosimeter production.
