Finite Systems

Welcome to the Finite Systems department!

We study systems with a finite number of degrees of freedom, or a finite volume with a well defined boundary.

Our focus is the dynamics of such systems interacting with the environment which can be a material environment (ultracold gases, clusters, quantum aggregates, lattices, etc.), radiation from advanced light sources, or noise, to give a few examples. Our theoretical tools range from traditional quantum methods over novel semiclassical approaches to classical concepts of nonlinear dynamics.

We are interested in cooporate and collective phenomena in such systems which emerge under extreme conditions, e.g., a cold environment or fast excitation.

Key topics include Rydberg electron dynamics in structured and unstructured environments, attosecond dynamics of localized and delocalized electrons driven by laser pulses including short X-ray pulses as avaiable from free electron lasers, and the fundamental relation between system and environment itself.

Our work aims at advancing theoretical concepts as well as at a close interaction with relevant experimental groups, for which the two DFG funded priority programs GiRyd and QUTIF offer a good platform for ultracold Rydberg and ultrafast phenomena, respectively.

If you are interested join us for a master thesis, PhD or postdoc. Informal inquires may be sent to Prof. Dr. Jan M Rost (rost[at]pks.mpg.de).