Table of Contents

1: Introduction
2: Elementary radiative processes
3: Laser velocity-selective excitation
4: Optical orientation of atoms and nuclei
5: Laser cooling of atoms
6: Laser trapping of atoms
7: Atom optics
8: From laser-cooled and trapped atoms to atomic and molecular quantum gases
9: Laser photoselective ionization of atoms
10: Multiphoton ionization of molecules
11: Photoselective laser control of molecules via molecular vibrations
12: Coherent laser control of molecules
13: Related topics: laser control of microparticles and force electrons
Conclusion

About the Author

Professor Vladilen Letokhov, Institute of Spectroscopy, Troitsk, Russia, and Member of the European Academy of Sciences Professor Letokhov was born in Irkutsk, Siberia (1939). He was educated at the prestigious Moscow Physical-Technical Institute (1957-1963).
He graduated in P.N.Lebedev Physical Institute in Moscow with Nobel Prize Winner Professor N.Basov. Since 1970 (to present) he has been Head of Laser Spectroscopy Laboratory (later Department) and Associate Director for research (1971-1989) at the Institute of Spectroscopy, Troitsk, and a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Awards: Lenin Prize for science and technology (1978);
State Prize for science and technology (2002);
European Physical Society Quantum Electronics Prize
(1998) etc.

Reviews

`... a book by one of the pioneers in this entire field, and one of the most cited Russian scientific authors.'
Colin Webb, University of Oxford
`... a timely book for a rapidly moving and expanding market, written by an internationally renowned expert in the field of laser cooling.'
Wolfgang Schleich, University of Ulm
`... an excellent book. It brings together topics which have a common theme - the laser control of atoms and molecules - but are not usually treated in the same book.'
Ifan Hughes, University of Durham