Hello

My name is James and I'm into spectroscopy and stuff. This site mostly exists as a repository for things I have made for either teaching or research.

Recently I wrote a short book about ultrafast lasers published through IOP ebooks. Most textbooks on laser physics are (understandably) written for physicists, but there is a rapidly growing group of laser users that don't come from this background, particularly within the life sciences. The existing textbooks are largely inaccessible for this group, so this book aims to provide some intuitive explanations of relevant phenomena - hopefully rendering many of the excellent existing laser textbooks more accessible. A second edition is on the way in early 2025.