Joint Centre for Extreme Photonics (JCEP)
JCEP is a joint undertaking between the National Research Council (NRC) and the University of Ottawa (uOttawa). Started in 2019, its goal is to amplify the research efforts of both organizations in the area of photonics.
“Extreme photonics” refers to the two limits of intensity — high and low. On the low-intensity side, we use intensities so weak that they contain but a single photon, in the realm of quantum optics. On the high-intensity side, we use femtosecond lasers whose intensities can ionize atoms and molecules, and can generate XUV attosecond pulses, or create pulses in the terahertz frequency range.