Los Alamos National Laboratory scientist Richard Epstein will describe the unusual and counterintuitive practice of using lasers to cool certain materials at a "Frontiers in Science" series lecture 7 p.m. Tuesday in Albuquerque. The Laboratory-sponsored event is free and open to the public at The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, 1801 Mountain Road N.W.
Epstein, leader of the Laboratory's Solid-State Optical Refrigerator project, will explain the technology, which is being developed for use both in space and on Earth. Early accomplishments of American and French scientists in this field earned them the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1997. (See more information at http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1997/ online.)
Epstein will repeat the talk at 7 p.m. at the following locations:
* September 21, Duane Smith Auditorium at Los Alamos High School
* September 26, the James A. Little Theatre of the New Mexico School for the Deaf in Santa Fe
* September 28, the Taoseño Room of the Taos Convention Center, 120 Civil Plaza Drive, in Taos.
Epstein has worked in theoretical astrophysics and in applied physics, earning the Laboratory's 2000 Fellows Prize for his accomplishments in optical refrigeration. For more information on the talks, see the Frontiers in Science Web site.
Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security, is operated by Los Alamos National Security, LLC, a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of California, The Babcock & Wilcox Company, and Washington Group International for the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.
Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health, and global security concerns.