The third international conference devoted to picosecond phenomena was held June 16-18, 1982 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, West Germany. Scientists from widely varying disciplines, physicists, chemists, biologists, and engineers came together to share their common interest in picosecond and subpicosecond processes. The meeting attracted approximately 250 scientists from numerous countries around the globe. More than .100 papers were concerned with the latest advances in the ex- perimental and theoretical understanding of ultrafast phenomena. New dis- coveries in femtosecond and picosecond pulse generation and new results in chemical dynamics, solid-state physics, and nonlinear optics were presented. The quality of the scientific reports, the enthusiasm of the participating scientists, as well as the magnificent surroundings of the Bavarian alps guaranteed a successful and pleasant conference. Numerous people have helped to make the conference a success. Special thanks are due to Carin von Oberkamp for dOing a superb job in implementing the meeting arrangements and to the program committee for the selection and organisation of the scientific presentations. The financial support of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft and of the Bayerische Staatsministerium fUr Unterricht und Kultur is gratefully ack- nowledged.

This second edition in paperback provides an up-to-date review of the state of the art in different generation processes for ultrashort laser pulses. Inaddition, extensive applications in a wide range of fields - in physics,engineering, chemistry, and biology - are discussed: Eight chapters dealwith the following topics: -the generation of picosecond and femtosecond laser pulses -nonlinear wave interactions - new investigations in solid-state physics - recent progress in optoelectronics - advances in coherent material excitations - ultrafast vibrational lifetimes and energy redistribution in liquids - new observations of chemical reactions in the liquid state - the primary processes of important biological systems The book is essential reading for scientists and engineers who want to know what is going on in this rapidly advancing field. It should also interest graduate students and others who seek an introduction to laserpulses.