Enhancement of High-Order Harmonic Emission and Isolated 7-as Pulse Generation with Rydberg Atoms by Using a Two-Color Laser Field

An efficient method to enhance the harmonic efficiency and generate an isolated attosecond pulse is proposed by preparing the initial state as a coherent superposition of the ground state and a Rydberg state in a two-color laser field. By numerically solving the time-dependent Schrödinger equation, we found that for the superposition state with the optimal Rydberg state, not only is the harmonic efficiency enhanced significantly, but also the width of the continuous spectrum is extended. The ionization probability and the time-frequency distribution of the harmonic spectrum are also calculated to understand the physical origin of the enhancement of the harmonic spectrum. In addition, by adjusting the parameter of the laser pulse, a supercontinuum with both higher conversion efficiency and slighter modulation can be observed. As a result, an isolated 7-as pulse with a bandwidth of 495 eV can be obtained after phase compensation.     

Generation of an isolated sub-30 attosecond pulse in a two-color laser field and a static electric field

We theoretically investigate high-order harmonic generation(HHG) from a helium ion model in a two-color laser field,which is synthesized by a fundamental pulse and its second harmonic pulse.It is shown that a supercontinuum spectrum can be generated in the two-color field.However,the spectral intensity is very low,limiting the application of the generated attosecond(as) pulse.By adding a static electric field to the synthesized two-color field,not only is the ionization yield of electrons contributing to the harmonic emission remarkably increased,but also the quantum paths of the HHG can be significantly modulated.As a result,the extension and enhancement of the supercontinuum spectrum are achieved,producing an intense isolated 26-as pulse with a bandwidth of about 170.5 eV.In particular,we also analyse the influence of the laser parameters on the ultrabroad supercontinuum spectrum and isolated sub-30-as pulse generation.     

Generation of isolated attosecond pulses with a specific waveform two-color laser field

We theoretically propose a new method for generating intense isolated attosecond pulses during high-order harmonic generation (HHG) process by accurately controlling electron motion with a two-color laser field,which consists of an 800-nm,4-fs elliptically polarized laser field and a 1400-nm,～43-fs linearly polarized laser field.With this method,the supercontinua with a spectral width above 200 eV are obtained,which can support a ～15-as isolated pulse after phase compensation.Classical and quantum analyses explain the controlling effects well.In particular,when the pulse duration of the 800-nm laser field increases to 20-fs,sub-100-as isolated pulses can be obtained even without any phase compensation.     

Theoretical Study of High-Order Harmonic Generation From a Coherent Superposition State in a Chirp-Free Pulse Combined with a Chirped Control Pulse

In this paper, we theoretically investigate high-order harmonic generation (HHG) from a helium atom prepared in a coherent superposition state in a two-color laser field. Numerical results show that the emission efficiency of the harmonic spectrum in a coherent superposition state is enhanced by approximately eight orders of magnitude compared with the case of the ground state. In addition, the effect of the initial population of the excited state on the HHG is presented to reveal the physical origin of the enhancement of HHG. By adjusting the laser parameters of the driving pulse, such as the chirping parameter, the relative phase, and the intensity of the driving pulse, an ultrabroad continuum with a width of 275 eV can be observed. Finally, an isolated 12-as pulse is generated after phase compensation.     

Isolated-attosecond-pulse generation by suppressing multiple rescatterings with plasmon-enhanced laser fields

An efficient scheme is proposed to generate broadband supercontinuum spectra and isolated attosecond laser pulses by suppressing multiple rescatterings with plasmon-enhanced laser fields. High-order harmonic generation from helium atoms in long wavelength is theoretically investigated. It is found that a quantum path interference and a multiple rescatterings interference are two fundamental limitations against the smooth degree of harmonic spectra. Numerical results show that the coherent superposition state in combination with plasmon-enhanced laser fields is robust for broadband supercontinuum generation. Then an isolated 78-as pulse can be directly generated.     

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.     

Isolated sub-30-attosecond pulse generation using a multicycle two-color chirped laser and a static electric field

We present a theoretical investigation of high-order harmonic generation in a chirped two-color laser field, which is synthesized by a 10-fs/800-nm fundamental chirped pulse and a 10-fs/1760-nm subharmonic pulse. It is shown that a supercontinuum can be produced using the multicycle two-color chirped field. However, the supercontinuum reveals a strong modulation structure, which is not good for the generation of an isolated attosecond pulse. By adding a static electric field to the multicycle two-color chirped field, not only the harmonic cutoff is extended remarkably, but also the quantum paths of the high-order harmonic generation （HHG） are modified significantly. As a result, both the extension of the supercontinuum and the selection of a single quantum path are achieved, producing an isolated 23-as pulse with a bandwidth of about 170.6 eV. Furthermore, the influences of the laser intensities on the supercontinuum and isolated attosecond pulse generation are investigated.     

Isolated ultrashort attosecond pulse generation from a coherent superposition state in a few-cycle chirped laser pulse

We theoretically demonstrate an efficient method for producing an isolated ultrashort attosecond pulse by high-order harmonic generation in an intense few-cycle chirped laser pulse. Our simulation calculations show that the harmonic spectrum reveals an ultrabroad extreme ultraviolet supercontinuum when the initial state is prepared in a coherent superposition of the ground and first excited states. It is also shown that the method can enhance the short quantum path and eliminate the long one, and then an isolated 23-attosecond pulse is produced. By properly adjusting the chirp parameter, a clean single attosecond pulse as short as 11 attoseconds is directly obtained.     

Generation of an isolated sub-100 attosecond pulse in the water-window spectral region

We propose a scheme to generate isolated attosecond pulses in the water-window spectral region. Based on the numerical solutions of the single active electron model, we investigate high-order harmonic generation in helium atoms driven by a multi-cycle two-colour optical field synthesized by an intense 2000 nm, 20 fs pulse and its frequency-doubled pulse. When the latter is slightly detuned and properly phase shifted with respect to the fundamental laser pulse, an ultra-broad extreme ultraviolet supercontinuum with a spectral width of 130~eV can be generated in the 270--400~eV spectral regions. A supercontinuum from 280--340~eV in the water window can be selected to yield an isolated 67 attosecond pulse without employing any phase compensation. This water window coherent x-ray pulse with less than 100 attosecond duration is a potential tool for studying the ultrafast electronic dynamics of biological samples in water.     

双色激光脉冲辐照叠加态生成强的38 as孤立脉冲

采用多周期800 nm激光组合1 600 nm红外激光脉冲辐照氦离子He⁺叠加态生成强、短孤立阿秒脉冲. 结果表明,相对于800 nm单色激光辐照基态情形,截止频率由70次谐波大幅度展宽到280次谐波,且获得频宽为108 eV并由单一短量子路径贡献的连续辐射谱,叠加该连续谱210次到280次谐波获得了脉宽为38 as的强、短孤立脉冲,其强度比单色场情形提高了11个数量级. 研究进一步表明,两束激光脉冲的时间延迟从0.05π到－0.05π之间获得的孤立阿秒脉冲是最优化的,且脉冲持续时间 关键词： 组合激光脉冲 相干叠加态 阿秒脉冲     

Isolated attosecond pulse generation from atom radiated by a three-color laser pulse

We theoretically investigate high-order harmonic and attosecond pulse generation from helium atom in a three-color laser field, which is synthesized by 10 fs/800 nm Ti-sapphire laser and a two-color field consisting of 30 fs/532 nm and30 fs/1330 nm pulses. Compared with harmonic spectrum generated by a monochromatic field, the harmonics generated from the synthesized three-color field show a supercontinuum spectrum with a bandwidth of 235 eV, ranging from the 154 th to the 306 th order harmonic. This phenomenon can be attributed to the fact that the ionization of atoms as well as motion of ionized electron can be effectively controlled in the three-color field. Therefore, an isolated 46-as pulse can be generated by superposing supercontinuum from the 160 th to the 210 th order harmonics.     

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.     

量子路径控制生成宽频软X射线连续辐射谱

数值研究了双色激光脉冲与一维氩原子相互作用的谐波发射功率谱.双色激光脉冲由800 nm和1600 nm的两束激光组成,脉冲持续时间为9.7 fs.计算结果表明,相对相位为π时,谐波截止频率从单色场情形的58 eV大幅度地展宽到316 eV,获得频宽为93 eV的软X射线连续辐射谱.此外,还采用短程的普薛耳－特勒势和长程的软化库仑势进行比对,数值结果表明该连续辐射谱的存在具有普适性.通过半经典的“三步”模型和时频分析小波变换方法对该连续辐射谱进行分析,发现其主要由单一的“短”量子路径生成,直接叠加频率从22 关键词： 红外双色激光脉冲 连续辐射谱 阿秒脉冲     

Supercontinuous high harmonic generation from asymmetric molecules in the presence of a terahertz field

We have investigated high-order harmonic generation from asymmetric molecules. It is found that supercontinuous high harmonics,which are produced from asymmetric molecules by significantly steering the ionization,are broken down when the electric field of the 5-fs driving laser pulse is increased to 0.16 a.u. The high harmonic generation from asymmetric molecules with the presence of a terahertz field is also investigated. This reveals that the terahertz controlled laser pulse significantly increases the energy difference between photons,emitted from the ejected electrons,in the first and second halves of the optical cycle at the centre of the driving laser pulse. In this way,a 200-eV broadband supercontinuum can be produced in the plateau,from which a 60-as pulse with a bandwidth of 60 eV can be directly obtained with a minor post-pulse.     

Approach to extreme ultraviolet supercontinuum in a two-color laser field

In recent years, it has been shown that an intense few-cycle driving pulse combined with a weak control pulse could efficiently extend the harmonic spectrum in the generation of high-order harmonics (HHG). In this paper, we adjust the intensities of the driving and control pulse to generate broader extreme ultraviolet (XUV) supercontinuum. We find that in some special situation when the intensity of the control pulse equals to that of the driving pulse, a clean supercontinuum as long as 80 eV can be realized and a 53-as pulse can be straightforwardly obtained.     

三色激光控制量子路径生成短于30阿秒的孤立脉冲

采用多周期的800 nm钛宝石激光组合1600 nm中红外脉 冲辐照氦离子产生高次谐波发射功率谱. 相对于单色场情形, 谐波谱出现明显的双平台结构, 且在第二平台区出现了光滑的连续辐射谱, 其转化效率相对于第一平台低了约两个数量级. 通过附加脉宽为1 fs的27次谐波脉冲到双色激光场的特定时域, 可以控制电子电离在半个光学周期内迅速提升, 获得了由单一短量子路径贡献的连续辐射谱, 使得第二平台区谐波的转化效率相对于组合场情形增强4个数量级, 且连续谱的频谱范围从第二平台区扩展到第一平台区, 叠加该连续谱190次到285次谐波生成了脉宽为29 as的强、短孤立脉冲.     

Coherent Control of High Harmonic Generation Driven by Metal Nanotip Photoemission

Steering ultrafast electron dynamics with well-controlled laser fields is very important for generation of intense supercontinuum radiation. It can be achieved through coherent control of the symmetry of the interaction between strong-field laser fields and a metal nanotip. We employ a scheme of two-color laser pulses combined with a weak static field to realize the control of a single quantum path to generate high harmonic generation from a single solid-state nanoemitter. Moreover, a smooth and ultrabroad supercontinuum in the extreme ultraviolet region is obtained, which can produce a single attosecond pulse. Our findings are beneficial for efficient generation of isolated sub-100 as XUV pulses from solid-state sources.     

Generation of an extreme ultraviolet supercontinuum in a two-color laser field

We theoretically investigate the high-order harmonic generation in a helium atom with a two-color optical field synthesized by an intense 6 fs pulse at 800 nm and a relatively weak 21.3 fs pulse at 400 nm. When the frequency-doubled pulse is properly time shifted with respect to the fundamental pulse, an ultrabroad extreme ultraviolet supercontinuum spectrum with a 148 eV spectral width can be generated which directly creates an isolated 65 as pulse even without phase compensation. We explain this extraordinary phenomenon by analyzing maximum electron kinetic energies at different return times.     

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     

Enhancement and broadening of extreme-ultraviolet supercontinuum in a relative phase controlled two-color laser field

We experimentally demonstrate the generation of an extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) supercontinuum in argon with a two-color laser field consisting of an intense 7 fs pulse at 800 nm and a relatively weak 37 fs pulse at 400 nm. By controlling the relative time delay between the two laser pulses, we observe enhanced high-order harmonic generation as well as spectral broadening of the supercontinuum. A method to produce isolated attosecond pulses with variable width and intensity is proposed.