Experiments

So that's it - my postdoc here on the US west coast ends tomorrow.
One paper already out (last year October,
https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.578336), the second one accepted
(https://doi.org/10.1103/32v3-tgfd) and in production now. Not too
bad I think.

I really like that second paper - it's an experimental work and
addresses vibrational coherence generated in a radical that is
produced upon breaking a chemical bond with UV light. My favorite
aspect of this work though is that the theory can be done - for
the most part - with pen and paper instead of having to use hundreds
or thousands of hours on some supercomputing platform. That doesn't
happen too often these days.

In early 2023 I interviewed for this job and stayed in a motel on
University Avenue for a week, a few blocks away from campus. Today,
after cleaning out my apartment and packing and re-packing multiple
suitcases I checked into the same motel again for my last night.
Full circle. I will miss that apartment.

But now, what's next? My new job starts in June, another postdoc
but less chemistry-centered. It'll be good to go back to doing more
physics. And it'll be good to be back in Europe with my family.
Coming here was a great experiment for me, truly an exercise in
many things. I'm glad I did that, but I'm also happy to be going
home.