Coherent atomic and molecular spectroscopy in the far infrared

Abstract

Recent advances in far infrared spectroscopy of atoms (fine structure transitions) and molecules (rotational transitions) are reviewed. Results obtained by means of Laser Magnetic Resonance, using fixed frequency lasers, and Tunable Far Infrared spectrometers are illustrated. The importance of far infrared spectroscopy for several fields, including astrophysics, atmospheric physics, atomic structure and metrology, is discussed.