Materials Interaction With Femtosecond Lasers : Springer : 9783030851378 : 3030851370 : 27 Oct 2022 : This book presents a unified view of the response of materials as a result of femtosecond laser excitation, introducing a general theory that captures both ultrashort-time non-thermal and long-time thermal phenomena. It includes a novel method for performing ultra-large-scale molecular dynamics simulations extending into experimental and technological spatial dimensions with ab-initio precision. For this, it introduces a new class of interatomic potentials, constructed from ab-initio data with the help of a self-learning algorithm, and verified by direct comparison with experiments in two different materials ? the semiconductor silicon and the semimetal antimony. In addition to a detailed description of the new concepts introduced, as well as giving a timely review of ultrafast phenomena, the book provides a rigorous introduction to the field of laser?matter interaction and ab-initio