Marc Vrakking

Prof. Marc Vrakking is a Professor of Ultrashort Physics at Freie Universität Berlin and Director of the Max Born Institute in Berlin. His research focuses on attosecond physics, ultrafast laser-matter interactions, and molecular dynamics under extreme conditions. He holds adjunct professorships and has coordinated major EU-funded research networks such as ATTOFEL and JMAP.

Education: PhD in Chemistry from UC Berkeley (1992), supervised by Prof. Yuan T. Lee; Master’s in Technical Physics from Eindhoven University of Technology (1987).

Research interests include: attosecond spectroscopy, XUV/X-ray free-electron lasers, strong-field ionization, and time-resolved molecular imaging. His work bridges theoretical and experimental approaches to study electron dynamics in atoms and molecules.

Notable grants include the NWO VICI Award (2005) and leadership in FP7 projects like FLUX and FLAME. He serves as Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Physics B and on advisory boards for institutions like the Manchester Photon Science Institute.

His laboratories at the Max Born Institute develop high-repetition-rate ultrafast laser systems, enabling studies of electron motion on attosecond timescales and structural changes in molecules during chemical reactions.