Shining a fast light on diamonds Conceptually, the electronic structure of matter is a fixed scaffold of energy levels, which electrons climb with the help of light absorption. In reality, the light's electromagnetic field distorts the scaffold, a phenomenon that becomes increasingly evident with rising field intensity. Lucchini et al. studied a manifestation of this phenomenon, termed the dynamical Franz Keldysh effect, in diamond substrates exposed to sudden, moderately intense infrared fields. Using attosecond probe pulses and accompanying theoretical simulations, they resolved and accounted for the extremely rapid ensuing electron dynamics. Science , this issue p. 916