Two-Photon Ionization of He through a Superposition of Higher Harmonics

We present experimental results and theoretical analysis of two-photon ionization of He by a superposition of the 7th to the 13th harmonic of a Ti:sapphire laser. Solving the time-dependent Schr?dinger equation for He in a coherent polychromatic field, the He+ yield is calculated. From this yield the number of He+ ions produced has been estimated and found in reasonable agreement with its measured value. The present results establish the feasibility of a second-order autocorrelation measurement of superposition of harmonics, and thus they represent the precursor towards the direct temporal characterization of attosecond pulse trains.     

Enhanced photoemission and ionization of He+ by simultaneous irradiation of fundamental laser and high-order harmonic pulses

We simulate the response of He⁺ exposed simultaneously to fundamental and 27th harmonic pulses from an intense Ti:sapphire laser. High-order harmonic emission from He⁺ is enhanced by 17 orders of magnitude compared with the case of the fundamental pulse alone. Moreover, while an individual 10 fs laser with a fundamental wavelength of 800 nm and a peak intensity of 3×10¹⁴ W/cm², or its 27th harmonic pulse with a peak intensity of 10¹³ W/cm², ionizes no more than 5×10^-6 of He⁺, their combined pulses lead to a surprisingly high He²⁺ yield of 17%. The underlying mechanism is either harmonic generation from a coherent superposition of states or two-color frequency mixing, depending on the laser wavelength. PACS 32.80.Rm; 42.50.Hz; 42.65.Ky     

Neutron yield upon the irradiation of thin TiD<Subscript>2</Subscript> foils with a superintense laser pulse

The yield of neutrons from the thermonuclear-fusion reaction D(d, n)³He induced in a thin skin layer by the interaction of a high-intensity laser pulse of picosecond duration with thin TiD₂ foils is calculated. A multiple ionization of titanium atoms at the leading edge of the laser pulse is considered. The heating of free electrons proceeds via induced inverse bremsstrahlung in elastic electron scattering on multiply charged titanium ions. The electron temperature is calculated. It proves to be about 10 keV at the laser-pulse intensity of 5×10¹⁸ W/cm² at the peak. The neutron yield is estimated at 10⁴ per laser pulse. These results are in qualitative agreement with experimental data.     

Nonadiabatic effects in the molecular high-order harmonic generation from two-center molecular ions

The nonadiabatic effects in the molecular high-order harmonic generation (MHHG) from H₂⁺ and its isotope have been theoretically investigated beyond the Born-Oppenheimer approximations. It is found that (i) due to the asymmetric contributions of the harmonic emission on the rising and the falling parts of the laser field, the frequency red-shifts in the MHHG can be found. As the initial vibrational state or the pulse intensity increases, the red-shifts of the harmonics are decreased and even the blue-shifts of the harmonics can be found in the higher pulse intensity with the higher vibrational state. With the increase of the pulse duration, the frequency red-shifts and the blue-shifts in the MHHG are decreased and enhanced, respectively. The shifts of the harmonics from the heavy nuclei are decreased compared with those from the light nuclei. (ii) Due to the coupling of the electron-nuclear dynamics, the non-odd harmonics can be produced at the larger internuclear distance. With the increase of the initial vibrational state or the pulse duration, the generations of the non-odd harmonics can be enhanced. As the pulse intensity increases, the intensities of the non-odd harmonics are first increased and then decreased at the much larger pulse intensity. Due to the slower nuclear motion, the generations of the non-odd harmonics are decreased as the nuclear mass increases. (iii) With the increase of the alignment angle of the molecule ions, the nonadiabatic effects in MHHG (including the shifts of the harmonics and the generations of the non-odd harmonics) are decreased.     

Laser ablation loading of a radiofrequency ion trap

The production of ions via laser ablation for the loading of radiofrequency (RF) ion traps is investigated using a nitrogen laser with a maximum pulse energy of 0.17?mJ and a peak intensity of about 250?MW/cm². A?time-of-flight mass spectrometer is used to measure the ion yield and the distribution of the charge states. Singly charged ions of elements that are presently considered for the use in optical clocks or quantum logic applications could be produced from metallic samples at a rate of the order of magnitude 10⁵ ions per pulse. A linear Paul trap was loaded with Th⁺ ions produced by laser ablation. An overall ion production and trapping efficiency of 10^?7 to 10^?6 was attained. For ions injected individually, a dependence of the capture probability on the phase of the RF field has been predicted. In the experiment this was not observed, presumably because of collective effects within the ablation plume.     

Harmonic Extension and Enhancement Using a Two-Color Chirped Pulse and an Ultrashort Ultraviolet Pulse

A promising method to both extend the harmonic energy and enhance the harmonic intensity is presented when a He atom is exposed to the combination of a two-color chirped pulse and an ultrashort ultraviolet pulse. It is found that: (1) with the introduction of the two chirps, the harmonic energy has been remarkably extended; (2) by properly adding an ultrashort ultraviolet pulse to this synthesized two-color chirped pulse, the harmonic yield is enhanced by 3 orders of magnitude compared with the two-color chirped case; (3) the harmonic spectrum higher than the 96th order shows an ultrabroad supercontinuum with a 395 eV bandwidth, and the proper superposition over the harmonics directly produced a series of intense 40 as pulses which is 3 orders of magnitude higher than that in the two-color chirped case.     

啁啾激光与半周期脉冲形成的组合场驱动原子产生单个阿秒脉冲

提出了由波长为800 nm、脉冲宽度为5 fs的啁啾激光与半周期脉冲形成组合场,并利用这种组合场驱动一维模型氦原子获得单个阿秒脉冲. 通过数值求解一维氦原子的含时薛定谔方程,发现氦原子在组合场驱动下高次谐波谱的截止位置可以扩展到I_p+21.6U_p. 对第二平台区域不同范围内高次谐波的叠加都能得到单个阿秒脉冲,最短可达37 as,特别是对平台区域的前端进行叠加不仅能够得到较短的单个阿秒脉冲,而且与截止位置附近高次谐波构造的阿秒脉冲相比,强度提高了3个数量级. 关键词： 啁啾激光场 半周期脉冲 高次谐波 阿秒脉冲     

Temporal characterization of short-pulse third-harmonic generation in an atomic gas by a transmission-grating Michelson interferometer

By use of a transmission-grating-based Michelson interferometer, second-order interferometric as well as intensity autocorrelation traces of the third harmonic of a Ti:sapphire 50-fs laser beam produced in Ar have been measured. The duration of the harmonic is found to be that expected from lowest-order perturbation theory. At this wavelength, the performance of the interferometer with respect to pulse-front distortion and dispersion is found to be satisfactory. This result is a first step toward the use of the interferometer for the temporal characterization of higher harmonics or harmonic superposition forming attosecond pulse trains.     

Thermonuclear fusion in a strong laser field

Thermonuclear fusion induced by the irradiation of solid deuterated cluster targets and foils with fields of strong femtosecond and picosecond laser pulses is discussed. The thermonuclear-fusion process D(d, n)³He in a collision of two deuterons at an energy of 50 to 100 keV in a deuterium cluster target irradiated with a strong laser pulse is discussed. A theory of thermonuclear fusion proceeding upon the irradiation of clusters formed by deuterium iodide (DI) molecules with the field of a superintense femtosecond laser pulse is developed. This theory is based on an above-barrier process in which the sequential multiple inner ionization of atomic ions within a cluster is accompanied by field-induced outer ionization. The yield of neutrons from thermonuclear fusion in a deuteron-deuteron collision after the completion of a laser pulse is calculated. The yield of neutrons is determined for the thermonuclear-fusion reaction proceeding in the interaction of an intense picosecond laser pulse with thin TiD₂ foils. A multiple ionization of titanium atoms at the front edge of the laser pulse is considered. The heating of free electron occurs in induced inverse bremsstrahlung in the process of electron scattering on multiply charged titanium ions. The yield of alpha particles in the thermonuclear-fusion reaction involving protons and ¹¹B nuclei that is induced in microdrops by a strong laser field is determined. Experimental data on laser-induced thermonuclear fusion are discussed.     

叠加态下3色场波形优化增大谐波辐射截止能量及强度

在He~+离子1s态和2s态的叠加态作为初始态时,提出一种优化3束激光场来增大谐波截止能量和强度的方法.结果表明:在叠加初始态下,谐波强度要比基态初始态下增强3个数量级以上.随后,在3色场波形优化下,谐波截止能量又得到增大,进而获得一个高强度、高光子能量的谐波光谱连续区.通过叠加光谱连续区上最后100次的谐波可以获得一个27 as的孤立阿秒脉冲.     

A strong single attosecond pulse generation from an atomic superposition state with chirped laser fields

We numerically investigate the chirp-depending of supercontinuum generation with preparing He+ ions in a coherent superposition of the states 1s and 2s. The results show that the initial population of the 2s state can lead to the formation of intense supercontinuum in spectrum. By precise control of chirp parameter, the spectral width and intensity of supercontinuum harmonics increase. Moreover, with a synchronous decrease of pulse durations, the bandwidth of the intense supercontinuum increases. The time–frequency characteristic of harmonics reveals that the long quantum-path is dominated in supercontinuum-region. As a result, an intense 7-as isolated pulse with a bandwidth of 570 eV can be achieved.     

Thermonuclear fusion in the irradiation of large clusters of deuterium iodide with a field of a superatomic femtosecond laser pulse

A theory of thermonuclear fusion caused by the irradiation of deuterium-iodide clusters with the field of a superatomic femtosecond laser pulse is developed. It is based on considering the process in which the sequential above-barrier multiple internal ionization of atomic ions within a cluster is accompanied by external field ionization. The theory is illustrated by taking the example of a cluster that is formed by 10⁶ molecules of deuterium iodide and which is irradiated with a laser pulse of duration 50 fs and intensity 2×10¹⁸ W/cm² at the peak. This case is dominated by I²⁶⁺ atomic ions. The yield of neutrons from thermonuclear fusion in a deuteron-deuteron collision upon the passage of a laser pulse is calculated. The result is 10⁵ neutrons per laser pulse. The mean kinetic energy of deuterons is estimated at 50 keV. Owing to induced inverse bremsstrahlung in scattering on multiply charged atomic ions, the electron temperature increases up to 28 keV. The role of the Mie resonance in the heating of the electron component is discussed.     

Excitation of promising nuclear fusion reactions in picosecond laser plasmas

The results of experiments devoted to studying the excitation of the promising nuclear fusion reactions ⁶Li(d, α)⁴He, ³He(d, p)⁴He, ¹¹B(p, 3α), and ⁷Li(p, α)⁴He, along with the standard reaction D(d, n)³He, in picosecond laser plasmas are presented. For the first time, it was shown that these reactions may proceed at a moderate laser-radiation intensity of 2 × 10¹⁸ W/cm², the respective yield being 2 × 10³ to 10⁵ per laser pulse. A brief survey of the main processes responsible for the generation of fast electrons and fast ions (protons) at the front surface of the target and for the excitation of nuclear fusion reactions is given. The calculated and experimental results on the yield from nuclear fusion reactions in picosecond laser plasmas are compared. The possibilities for optimizing the yield from the promising fusion reactions excited in femto- and picosecond laser plasmas are discussed.     

Charge composition of a cluster plasma upon irradiation of large atomic clusters by the field of a superatomic femtosecond laser pulse

A theory is developed for calculating the charge composition of a cluster plasma produced upon irradiation of large atomic clusters by the field of a superatomic femtosecond laser pulse. The theory is based on the overbarrier process of a successive multiple internal ionization of atomic ions inside a cluster accompanied by the external field ionization. Collision ionization is also taken into account in the calculations. The theory is illustrated by the example of a cluster consisting of 10⁶ xenon atoms irradiated by a 50-fs laser pulse with a peak intensity of 2×10¹⁸ W/cm². In this case, the Xe²⁶⁺ ions dominate. The amounts of atomic xenon ions with multiplicity up to 31 are calculated.     

High harmonic generation in a laser plasma

The results of investigation of high harmonics of radiation of a Ti:sapphire laser propagating through a laser plasma generated on the surface of different targets are presented. For most of the targets, the intensity distribution of the high harmonics generated is found to form a plateaulike pattern similar to that observed in the case of gas jets. The generation of high harmonics (up to the 65th harmonic, λ = 12.24 nm) is caused by the interaction of femtosecond laser radiation with ions. The conversion efficiency in the plateau region varies from 10^?7 to 8 × 10^?5 depending on the target. The main restriction on the conversion efficiency and the peak intensity of the harmonics generated is caused by the self-defocusing of the femtosecond radiation due to free charge carriers formed as a result of tunnel ionization.     

极紫外阿秒脉冲在高次谐波产生过程中引起的非偶极效应

当红外强激光和极紫外(XUV)阿秒脉冲共同作用于原子分子时，电离出去的电子通常会吸收和辐射激光光子而发生能量扩展.讨论了由于XUV阿秒脉冲的短波长与扩展后的电子波包尺度可相比拟时在高次谐波产生过程中引起的非偶极效应.采用H⁺₂作为模型分子，并把分子轴置于激光场的传播方向，通过解二维含时薛定谔方程并比较考虑非偶极效应和采用偶极近似两种方法计算得到的结果，两者相比，前者的谐波强度降低，谐波频率向低级次稍有移动，电子能谱的能带内出现了更多的光电子峰.在相同的光电子能量处，两种方法计算得到的信号强度相差2—5倍.并且这种非偶极效应随着红外基频光光强的增大而增强，随阿秒脉冲波长的增大而减弱. 关键词： 非偶极效应 光场空间不均匀性 阿秒脉冲 高次谐波产生     

Ellipticity-dependent of multiple ionisation methyl iodide cluster using 532 nm nanosecond laser

The dependence of multiply charged ions on laser ellipticity in methyl iodide clusters with 532 nm nanosecond laser was measured using a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. The intensities of multiply charged ions I^q+(q = 2–4) with circularly polarised laser pulse were clearly higher than those with linearly polarised laser pulse but the intensity of single charged ions I⁺ was inverse. And the dependences of ions on the optical polarisation state were investigated and a flower petal and square distribution for single charged ions (I⁺, C⁺) and multiply charged ions (I²⁺, I³⁺, I⁴⁺, C²⁺) were observed, respectively. A theoretical calculation was also proposed to simulate the distributions of ions and theoretical results fitted well with the experimental ones. It indicated that the high multiphoton ionisation probability in the initial stage would result in the disintegration of big clusters into small ones and suppress the production of multiply charged ions.     

Control of the supercontinuum spectrum bandwidth and emission efficiency for intense-isolated sub 40-as pulse generation by using a coherent superposition of states

We present a systematic study for generation of intense and short single as pulse in pre-excited He-ionic medium with the use of a same-frequency laser field synthesis. By preparing He+ ions in a coherent superposition of the ground and excited states, a depth of spectral modulation efficiently decreases and the efficiency of harmonic plateau increases. By means of optimizing the laser parameters, the broadband XUV supercontinuum achieve by the superposition state scheme. It shows that by increasing the harmonic order of the supercontinuum, emission efficiency increases. The detailed view shows that the short-trajectory contributes to each supercontinuous harmonic and long-trajectory fully suppresses. Finally, by superposing some properly selected harmonics from optimal spectrum, an intense and almost transform-limited isolated 38-as pulse can be generated without phase compensation. A single isolated 5-as pulse can be achieved after phase compensation. These results are explained by using classical and quantum time-frequency analyses.     

Theoretical Exploration of the Isotopic Effect on Molecular High-Order Harmonic Generation

The isotopic effect on the generation of the molecular high-order harmonics is studied by numerically solving the one-dimensional time-dependent Schrödinger equation when the model hydrogen molecule ions/hydrogen deuterium molecule ions are exposed to an intense laser pulse. To explain the effect more clearly, not only the ionization probabilities but also the electron–nuclear probability density distributions and time-frequency profiles are calculated. The results show that more intense harmonics are generated in the asymmetric diatomic molecule ions/hydrogen deuterium molecule ions than those of hydrogen molecule ions. Moreover, the interference minimum in the harmonic spectra is investigated by adjusting the laser intensity and the initial vibrational state. It is shown that the interference minimum is sensitive to the laser intensity and the initial vibrational level for hydrogen molecule ions; in contrast, it is only dependent on the initial vibrational level for hydrogen deuterium molecule ions.     

Pulse width measurement of high-order harmonics by autocorrelation

Pulse widths of the 7th and 9th harmonics of a Ti:sapphire (TiS) laser have been measured by an autocorrelation technique using two-photon and three-photon ionization of He and Ar as nonlinear phenomena. The pulse widths of the 7th and 9th harmonics were 47 fs and 27 fs, respectively, where the pulse width of the fundamental pulse was 34 fs. The pulse width of the 9th harmonic depends strongly on the peak intensity of the fundamental pulse. These results can be explained by quantum theory by taking into account the temporal and spatial distribution of the fundamental beam. Received: 15 June 1999 / Revised version: 8 October 1999 / Published online: 2 February 2000