Application of a parallel-projection inversion technique to z-scan spectra of multiply charged xenon and krypton ions, obtained by non-resonant field ionization of neutral targets, has for the first time permitted the direct observation of intensity-dependent ionization probabilities. These ionization efficiency curves have highlighted the presence of structure in the tunnelling regime, previously unobserved under full-volume techniques.
We report a novel experimental technique for the comparison of ionization processes in ultrafast laser pulses irrespective of pulse ellipticity. Multiple ionization of xenon by 50 fs 790 nm, linearly and circularly polarized laser pulses is observed over the intensity range 10 TW/cm^2 to 10 PW/cm^2 using Effective Intensity Matching (EIM), which is coupled with Intensity Selective Scanning (ISS) to recover the geometry-independent probability of ionization. Such measurements, made possible by quantifying diffraction effects in the laser focus, are compared directly to theoretical predictions of multiphoton, tunnel and field ionization, and a remarkable agreement demonstrated. EIM-ISS allows the straightforward quantification of the probability of recollision ionization in a linearly polarized laser pulse. Furthermore, probability of ionization is discussed in terms of the Keldysh adiabaticity parameter, gamma, and the influence of the precursor ionic states present in recollision ionization is observed for the first time.
We report on tunnel ionization of Xe by 2-cycle, intense, infrared laser pulses and its dependence on carrier-envelope-phase (CEP). At low values of optical field ($E$), the ionization yield is maximum for cos-like pulses with the dependence becoming stronger for higher charge states. At higher $E$-values, the CEP dependence either washes out or flips. A simple phenomenological model is developed that predicts and confirms the observed results. CEP effects are seen to persist for 8-cycle pulses. Unexpectedly, electron rescattering plays an unimportant role in the observed CEP dependence. Our results provide fresh perspectives in ultrafast, strong-field ionization dynamics of multi-electron systems that lie at the core of attosecond science.
Rapid-advancing intense laser technologies enable the possibility of a direct laser-nucleus coupling. In this paper the effect of intense laser fields on a series of nuclear fission processes, including proton decay, alpha decay, and cluster decay, is theoretically studied with the help of nuclear double folding potentials. The results show that the half-lives of these decay processes can be modified by non-negligible amounts, for example on the order of 0.01 or 0.1 percents in intense laser fields available in the forthcoming years. In addition to numerical results, an approximate analytical formula is derived to connect the laser-induced modification to the decay half-life and the decay energy.
The ionization probability of N$_2$, O$_2$, and CO$_2$ in intense laser fields is studied theoretically as a function of the alignment angle by solving the time-dependent Schrodinger equation numerically assuming only the single-active-electron approximation. The results are compared to recent experimental data [D.~Pavi{v{c}}i{c} et al., Phys.,Rev.,Lett. {bf 98}, 243001 (2007)] and good agreement is found for N$_2$ and O$_2$. For CO$_2$ a possible explanation is provided for the failure of simplified single-active-electron models to reproduce the experimentally observed narrow ionization distribution. It is based on a field-induced coherent core-trapping effect.
The alignment dependence of the ionization behavior of H$_2$ exposed to intense ultrashort laser pulses is investigated on the basis of solutions of the full time-dependent Schrodinger equation within the fixed-nuclei and dipole approximation. The total ionization yields as well as the energy-resolved electron spectra have been calculated for a parallel and a perpendicular orientation of the molecular axis with respect to the polarization axis of linear polarized laser pulses. For most, but not all considered laser peak intensities the parallel aligned molecules are easier to ionize. Furthermore, it is shown that the velocity formulation of the strong-field approximation predicts a simple interference pattern for the ratio of the energy-resolved electron spectra obtained for the two orientations, but this is not confirmed by the full ab initio results.