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“CONGRATULATING DR. DONNA STRICKLAND AND DR. GERARD MOUROU ON THEIR NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Energy was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1628 on Dec. 10, 2018.
The Department oversees energy policies and is involved in how the US handles nuclear programs. Downsizing the Federal Government, a project aimed at lowering taxes and boosting federal efficiency, said the Department's misguided energy regulations have caused large losses to consumers for decades.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
CONGRATULATING DR. DONNA STRICKLAND AND DR. GERARD MOUROU ON THEIR
NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS
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HON. JOSEPH D. MORELLE
of new york
in the house of representatives
Monday, December 10, 2018
Mr. MORELLE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my constituents, Ms. Donna Strickland and Mr. Gerard Mourou, who were recently awarded the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physics for their inventions of ``tools made of light.'' Their incredible research on laser physics was done at the University of Rochester's Laboratory for Laser Energetics, a world-
class scientific institution in my district, and was made possible thanks to federal support by the Department of Energy.
Dr. Strickland is only the third woman to receive the prize in physics, joining Marie Curie, in 1903, and Maria Goeppert-Mayer, in 1963, and is the first woman laureate in Rochester's history. Additionally, Drs. Strickland and Mourou are now two of twelve University of Rochester students or faculty who have been recognized with a Nobel Prize.
Drs. Strickland and Mourou have received this momentous award for their ground-breaking work into the design of high-power lasers. Their discovery of ``chirped-pulse amplification'' enabled a stunning advance in laser power and paved the way for the creation of very short, intense laser pulses lasting only a fraction of a second, making it possible to build more compact and precise laser systems. The
``chirped-pulse amplification'' technique, first realized in their table-top terawatt, or ``T-cubed'', laser, has since been used in a variety of applications, from Lasik eye surgery to the manufacturing of materials used in smartphones.
Their discovery enabled significant increases in the peak power of lasers by overcoming the existing limitations due to laser pulses damaging the material used to amplify them by first stretching the light pulse, amplifying the longer lower-power pulse, and then re-
compressing the light into a short high-power pulse. Although their research was performed in the 1980's, to this day, ``chirped-pulse amplification'' remains the state-of-the-art technique for generating the highest-power lasers in the world and has opened the door to new fields of inquiry, such as femtochemistly, and enabled new medical, scientific, and commercial applications.
The Laboratory of Laser Energetics is the largest university-based research center funded by the Department of Energy and is currently home to 350 scientists, engineers, and staff. In addition, it is the only National Nuclear Security Agency facility with a specific mission to train graduate students in inertial confinement fusion, high-power lasers, and high energy density physics research. In addition to being a significant source of scientific education and leadership, the Laboratory of Laser Energetics is a vital contributor to our national security and an engine of innovation and growth for the laser, optics, imaging and photonics sector which have been so important to the Rochester and Finger Lakes region.
It gives me great pleasure to represent an institution and a district with such a proud and storied history of innovation. I am proud to recognize Drs. Donna Strickland and Gerard Mourou for their outstanding research accomplishments and contributions to the scientific community which have rightly earned them a Nobel Prize. I wish them all the best in their future endeavors and look forward to the continued success they will achieve.
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