Coherent hard x rays from attosecond pulse train-assisted harmonic generation

High-order harmonic generation from atomic systems is considered in the crossed fields of a relativistically strong infrared laser and a weak attosecond pulse train of soft x rays. Due to one-photon ionization by the x-ray pulse, the ionized electron obtains a starting momentum that compensates the relativistic drift, which is induced by the laser magnetic field, and allows the electron to efficiently emit harmonic radiation upon recombination with the atomic core in the relativistic regime. This way, short pulses of coherent hard x rays of up to 40 keV energy can be generated.     

基于半解析自洽理论研究相对论激光脉冲驱动下阿秒X射线源的产生

发展了一种描述相对论激光脉冲与稠密等离子体相互作用产生阿秒X射线源的半解析自洽理论.该理论模型不仅可以获得等离子体界面的振荡轨迹、振荡面电场和磁场等物理参数,而且能够精确计算出激光脉冲驱动下阿秒X射线源的频谱,结果与粒子模拟程序一致.理论计算结果表明阿秒X射线源的辐射特性与等离子体界面随时演化过程相关,在周期量级激光场驱动下等离子体界面振荡振幅呈现中心不对称,通过改变激光场的载波包络相位实现对等离子体界面振荡的控制,获得准单阿秒X射线源.     

High order harmonic generation from solid targets: Towards intense attosecond pulses

Experiments and computer simulations on high order harmonic generation (HOHG) from steep plasma gradients using intense femtosecond laser pulses are presented. The importance of the plasma scale length for the efficiency of HOHG is demonstrated. By changing the pump intensity and the target parameters the regime of HOHG can be switched from non-relativistic to relativistic. Simulations show that attosecond pulses should already be present in our experiments in both interaction regimes. Two-color driven harmonic generation is shown to provide a highly efficient way of attosecond pulse production.     

不同激光等离子体条件下的阿秒光脉冲产生

通过一维粒子模拟研究了利用相对论少周期强激光与固体密度等离子体表面相互作用实现单个孤立阿秒光脉冲产生的参数条件。主要研究描述相互作用的多维参数,如激光强度、入射角和等离子体标尺长度等,对相对论高次谐波能量转换效率和孤立阿秒光脉冲分离度的影响。研究发现,虽然激光等离子体参数对阿秒光脉冲产生的影响是复杂的,但是存在着能够实现大能量孤立阿秒光脉冲的最佳等离子体标尺长度和最佳入射角。当其他相互作用条件确定时,使用中等强度的相对论强激光可以在较宽的参数范围内实现孤立的阿秒光脉冲。大角度入射时,孤立阿秒光脉冲的分离度较高,能够实现孤立阿秒光脉冲的相互作用参数范围也较宽。     

激光与相对论电子束相互作用中阿秒X射线脉冲的产生

本文对激光与相对论电子束相互作用产生的阿秒X射线脉冲进行了研究.阿秒X射线脉冲是由于激光被相对论运动的电子束经过汤姆孙后向散射产生的.讨论了等离子体参数对产生的阿秒X射线的影响.发现其波长随着入射激光的频率的增加或电子束的速度增加而减小.选择合适的参数还可以获得"水窗"波段的X射线.还讨论了相对论电子束的密度与其前沿的密度梯度的大小对所产生X射线的转化效率的影响. 关键词： 阿秒X射线脉冲 汤姆孙后向散射 超强激光 相对论电子束     

强激光等离子体相互作用驱动高次谐波与阿秒辐射研究进展

对超快过程的探测和控制决定了人类在微观层面认识和改造物质世界的能力.阿秒光源可完成对组成物质的电子运动及其关联效应进行超高时空分辨的探测和操控,为人类认识微观世界提供了全新手段,被认为是激光科学史上最重要的里程碑之一.世界主要科技强国都将阿秒科学列为未来10年重要的科技发展方向.利用强激光与物质相互作用产生高次谐波是突破飞秒极限实现高亮度阿秒脉冲辐射的重要方案之一,成为了近年来激光等离子体领域的研究热点.本文聚焦强激光与等离子体相互作用中的高次谐波和阿秒脉冲辐射,主要介绍其产生机制、研究进展和前沿应用,并对未来的发展趋势和创新突破进行展望.     

Ionization phase-match gating for wavelength-tunable isolated attosecond pulse generation

High-order harmonic emission can be confined to the leading edge of an 800 nm driver laser pulse under moderately intense focusing conditions (7×10¹⁴ W/cm²) (Pfeifer et al. in Opt. Express 15:17120, 2007). Here, the experimentally observed curtailment of harmonic production on the leading edge of the driver pulse is shown to be controlled by an ionization-induced phase-matching condition. The transient plasma density inherent to the process of high-harmonic generation terminates the harmonic emission by an ultrafast loss of phase matching on the leading edge of the laser pulse. The analysis is supported by a reconstruction of the in situ intensity envelope of the driver pulse with attosecond temporal resolution, performed by measurements of the carrier-envelope phase dependence of individual half-cycle harmonic cutoffs. The method opens the way to wavelength-tunable isolated attosecond pulse generation.     

附加谐波脉冲生成强的39阿秒孤立脉冲

采用多周期800 nm激光组合它的27次谐波脉冲生成超短、宽频的孤立阿秒脉冲.研究表明,脉宽为1 fs的27次谐波脉冲可以有效地控制电子动力学过程.将其加入到单色激光场的特定时域,可以控制电离概率在半个光学周期内迅速提升,使得谐波的转化效率相对于单色场情形增强4个数量级,并实现单一的短量子路径选择,出现频宽为108 eV的超连续辐射谱,叠加该连续谱140次到210次谐波获得了脉宽为39as的强、短孤立脉冲.与文献[7]中采用5 fs/800 nm激光附加紫外阿秒脉冲的方法相比,该方案生成的连续谱频带增宽一 关键词： 组合激光脉冲 连续辐射谱 阿秒脉冲     

三色圆偏振激光组合脉冲驱动氦原子产生椭圆偏振的阿秒脉冲

我们提出利用频率为ω,3ω和强度较弱的2ω组成的三色圆偏振激光组合脉冲驱动氦原子能够得到椭偏率较大的阿秒脉冲链的一种方法.通过强场近似方法,计算了氦原子在两色和三色圆偏振激光组合脉冲驱动下发射高次谐波谱及其合成阿秒脉冲链,比较了氦原子(初态为s态)在这两种情况下发射高次谐波谱的特点及其合成阿秒脉冲链椭偏率的大小,结果发现,在反旋的两色ω,3ω激光脉冲基础上加入了频率为2ω的第三色激光脉冲联合作用到氦原子上,所得到的阿秒脉冲链的椭偏率相对于双圆场情况下有所增加,通过调整ω,3ω激光的强度比,并且选择适当的第三色激光的强度,对初态为s态的原子,仍能够得到具有较大椭偏率的阿秒脉冲链.     

Generation of attosecond pulses with ellipticity-modulated fundamental

We have studied experimentally and theoretically high-order harmonic generation using a laser field with a time-dependent ellipticity. We show that the harmonic emission can be confined into a narrow temporal window, in which the fundamental polarization is quasi-linear. This allows a single attosecond pulse (200 as) with a fundamental field obtained from 10 fs pulse to be generated. PACS 42.65.Ky; 42.65.Re; 32.80.Wr     

Spatial control of recollision wave packets with attosecond precision

We propose orthogonally polarized two-color laser pulses to steer tunneling electrons with attosecond precision around the ion core. We numerically demonstrate that the angles of birth and recollision, the recollision energy, and the temporal structure of the recolliding wave packet can be controlled without stabilization of the carrier-envelope phase of the laser, and that the wave packet's properties can be described by classical relations for a point charge. This establishes unique mapping between parameters of the laser field and attributes of the recolliding wave packet. The method is capable of probing ionic wave packet dynamics with attosecond resolution from an adjustable direction and might be used as an alternative to aligning molecules. Shaping the properties of the recollision wave packet by controlling the laser field may also provide new routes for improvement of attosecond pulse generation via high harmonic radiation.     

阿秒脉冲测量的研究进展

对于发生在原子范围内的电子动力学过程的观测需要阿秒量级的时间分辨率.理论和实验研究都已证明,用周期量级超短脉冲直接泵浦的高次谐波过程可以产生阿秒脉冲序列甚至单个的阿秒脉冲,将阿秒脉冲用于测量超快动力学过程之前先要对阿秒脉冲本身性质做出描述,传统的自相关方法和互相关方法不能直接推广到阿秒量级超短脉冲的测量.文章详细介绍了近几年发展起来的阿秒脉冲测量方法,分析了它们的分辨极限和局限性.     

采用双脉冲驱动产生高次谐波阿秒脉冲

提出了采用双脉冲机理来产生阿秒脉冲的方法.研究发现采用双脉冲不仅可以产生单个的阿秒脉冲，从而突破目前产生阿秒脉冲的驱动源（几个飞秒的超短激光脉冲）的能量限制，而且在相同的峰值强度下，双脉冲能够产生强度更高的阿秒脉冲. 关键词： 阿秒脉冲 双脉冲机理 高次谐波     

超相对论强度激光与薄膜靶作用中0.4 nm以下X射线阿秒脉冲的产生

用一维粒子模拟程序对功率密度在10²² W/cm²以上的超强激光驱动薄膜靶产生的相对论电子层及其经过汤姆孙散射产生的阿秒X射线进行了研究. 结果表明, 在超相对论强度范围下增大驱动激光强度, 相应减小等离子体密度及厚度可使电子层获得更高纵向动量, 使汤姆孙散射光明显向更短波长移动. 优化相关参数得到了波长为 1.168 nm的阿秒脉冲. 经过对倍频探测光方案与驱动光以及薄膜靶参数进行综合考虑和优化, 得到的X射线相干辐射波长有效减小到0.4 nm以下, 产生的光子能量达到2 keV以上. 关键词： 超相对论强度激光 阿秒X射线 相对论电子层 汤姆孙后向散射     

Chirped polarization-gating technique for isolated attosecond pulse generation

We propose a scheme to generate broadband high harmonic supercontinuum and single attosecond pulse emission in time domain by employing a chirped polarization-gating laser field. It is shown that this scheme can significantly extend the high harmonic cutoff to higher energy region, and the produced isolated attosecond pulse is shorter than 100 attoseconds after proper dispersion compensation, when a 7 fs driving laser pulse is used.     

Relativistic generation of isolated attosecond pulses in a lambda 3 focal volume

Lasers that provide an energy encompassed in a focal volume of a few cubic wavelengths (lambda(3)) can create relativistic intensity with maximal gradients, using minimal energy. With particle-in-cell simulations we found, that single 200 attosecond pulses could be produced efficiently in a lambda(3) laser pulse reflection, via deflection and compression from the relativistic plasma mirror created by the pulse itself. An analytical model of coherent radiation from a charged layer confirms the pulse compression and is in good agreement with simulations. The novel technique is efficient (approximately 10%) and can produce single attosecond pulses from the millijoule to the joule level.     

The control of the electron quantum paths for the generation of isolated attosecond pulse using a three-color laser scheme

We theoretically propose a three-color laser scheme to enhance the high-order harmonic intensity and generate an isolated attosecond pulse. By adding a 3 fs, 1600 nm laser pulse to a synthesized two-color laser field (5 fs, 800 nm and 10 fs, 1200 nm), the harmonic intensity is effectively enhanced and an isolated attosecond pulse with duration 41 as is generated. In this scheme, the short trajectory is suppressed, the selection of the long quantum path can be achieved. We also investigate emission time of harmonics in terms of the time-frequency analysis and the semi-classical three-step model to illustrate the physical mechanism of high-order harmonic generation.     

Attosecond spectroscopy for filming the ultrafast movies of atoms,molecules and solids

Three decades ago, a highly nonlinear nonpertubative phenomenon, now well-known as the high harmonic generation (HHG), was discovered when intense laser irradiates gaseous atoms. As the HHG produces broadband coherent radiation, it becomes the most promising source to obtain attosecond pulses. The door to the attosecond science was opened ever since. In this review, we will revisit the incredible adventure to the attoworld. Firstly, the progress of attosecond pulse generation is outlined. Then, we introduce the efforts on imaging the structures or filming the ultrafast dynamics of nuclei and electrons with unprecedented attosecond temporal and Angstrom spatial resolutions, utilizing the obtained attosecond pulses as well as the high harmonic spectrum itself.     

正交偏振双色激光场作用下生成的孤立阿秒脉冲

我们理论研究了正交偏振双色激光场作用下的高次谐波发射和孤立阿秒脉冲的产生.当y方向加一束中红外激光脉冲(12.5 fs/2000 nm),x方向加一束强度较弱的激光脉冲(12 fs/800 nm)时,我们得到从250 eV到350 eV的超连续谐波平台,在平台范围内叠加50 eV的谐波,可以得到一个脉宽约为97as的孤立阿秒脉冲. 通过时频分析,我们解释了高次谐波发射的物理机制.     

利用三色组合脉冲激光获得孤立阿秒脉冲发射

孤立阿秒脉冲因可以跟踪和控制原子及分子内电子的运动过程而备受关注.本文从理论上开展了氦原子在3束飞秒脉冲激光组合场辐照下产生的高次谐波和阿秒脉冲辐射的研究.组合激光场由16 fs/1600 nm,15 fs/1100 nm和5.3 fs/800 nm的钛宝石脉冲构成.与前两束脉冲合成的双色场产生谐波谱相比,附加钛宝石脉冲的三色场产生的高次谐波发射谱呈现出高转换效率及宽带超连续特性,超连续谱范围覆盖从230—690次谐波,傅里叶变换后实现了128 as高强度孤立短脉冲的产生.该结果归因于合成的三色场呈现出高功率及少周期的中红外飞秒脉冲激光特性,可以有效控制原子电离以及复合发生在中红外飞秒脉冲的一个有效光学周期内.