Abstract/Summary

An overview of recent advances in measurement modalities using dual femtosecond laser configurations such as asynchronous optical sampling and frequency comb spectrometry is provided. These enable time-resolved interactions of light with matter across different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. An enhanced energy exchange and thus signal-to-noise-ratio between a sensing system and its local environment is possible through the use of resonant structures, metamaterials, plasmonics, dielectric microspheres and other slow-light structures. Finally, new ways of interpreting measurements of relevance to nanotechnology using state space network analysis, system identification and dielectrics theory are discussed using examples from atomic force microscopy, memristive systems and nanosquids (superconducting quantum interference devices).