Quantum tunneling of electrons between a nanotip and a sample in a scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) provides atomic-scale resolution, but lacks time resolution. Recent experiments have shown that ultrashort laser pulses can make the tunneling process in STM ultrafast down to the attosecond timescale, but a comprehensive physical picture of the underlying mechanism has been missing. In our new work in Physical Review Letters, Ph.D. student Boyang Ma has cracked the challenging theoretical problem of attosecond STM and formulated an intuitive strong-field theory model. Most strikingly, we find the well-known three-step picture of attosecond science at work. In step 1, the electron tunnels from the nanotip into the small nanometer-sized gap and gains kinetic energy in step 2, before entering the sample in step 3. The model allows for predictions of our ongoing experimental work – stay tuned! For his work, Boyang Ma has been awarded the KLA award for excellent research – congratulations!