Shepherd electron effects in multiple ionization of rubidium by circularly polarized intense laser fields

Abstract Nonsequential double/multiple ionization (NSDI/NSMI) of atoms in strong laser fields is a paradigm system for studying field-intervened electron-electron correlation. However, there exists a long-standing debated topic as to how NSDI/NSMI is triggered in a circularly-polarized laser field....

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Main Authors: Shiwei Liu, Difa Ye, Yuhai Jiang, Jie Liu
格式: Article
語言:English
出版: Nature Portfolio 2023-10-01
叢編:Communications Physics
在線閱讀:https://doi.org/10.1038/s42005-023-01392-w
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author Shiwei Liu
Difa Ye
Yuhai Jiang
Jie Liu
author_facet Shiwei Liu
Difa Ye
Yuhai Jiang
Jie Liu
author_sort Shiwei Liu
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Nonsequential double/multiple ionization (NSDI/NSMI) of atoms in strong laser fields is a paradigm system for studying field-intervened electron-electron correlation. However, there exists a long-standing debated topic as to how NSDI/NSMI is triggered in a circularly-polarized laser field. In this contribution, it is shown counter-intuitively that the NSMI of alkali atoms is strongly enhanced due to a mechanism induced by their intrinsic shell structure, coined as the shepherd electron effect. Specifically, we find that the early-released outermost electron (the shepherd electron) can be stabilized on the Rydberg states even after dislodging some other inner-shell electrons and thus lead to the emergence of a transient hollow atom. Experimental signatures of the shepherd electron effect and its real-time observation with the attoclock technique are discussed. These results have substantially enriched our understanding of NSMI, beyond the well-accepted cascade recollision picture. They might have applications in coherent extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) light amplification.
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spelling doaj.art-d449a82b51ba42e08daa1cef05a50dc82023-11-20T09:40:13ZengNature PortfolioCommunications Physics2399-36502023-10-01611810.1038/s42005-023-01392-wShepherd electron effects in multiple ionization of rubidium by circularly polarized intense laser fieldsShiwei Liu0Difa Ye1Yuhai Jiang2Jie Liu3Beijing Computational Science Research CenterBeijing Computational Science Research CenterCenter for Transformative Science and School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech UniversityGraduate School, China Academy of Engineering PhysicsAbstract Nonsequential double/multiple ionization (NSDI/NSMI) of atoms in strong laser fields is a paradigm system for studying field-intervened electron-electron correlation. However, there exists a long-standing debated topic as to how NSDI/NSMI is triggered in a circularly-polarized laser field. In this contribution, it is shown counter-intuitively that the NSMI of alkali atoms is strongly enhanced due to a mechanism induced by their intrinsic shell structure, coined as the shepherd electron effect. Specifically, we find that the early-released outermost electron (the shepherd electron) can be stabilized on the Rydberg states even after dislodging some other inner-shell electrons and thus lead to the emergence of a transient hollow atom. Experimental signatures of the shepherd electron effect and its real-time observation with the attoclock technique are discussed. These results have substantially enriched our understanding of NSMI, beyond the well-accepted cascade recollision picture. They might have applications in coherent extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) light amplification.https://doi.org/10.1038/s42005-023-01392-w
spellingShingle Shiwei Liu
Difa Ye
Yuhai Jiang
Jie Liu
Shepherd electron effects in multiple ionization of rubidium by circularly polarized intense laser fields
Communications Physics
title Shepherd electron effects in multiple ionization of rubidium by circularly polarized intense laser fields
title_full Shepherd electron effects in multiple ionization of rubidium by circularly polarized intense laser fields
title_fullStr Shepherd electron effects in multiple ionization of rubidium by circularly polarized intense laser fields
title_full_unstemmed Shepherd electron effects in multiple ionization of rubidium by circularly polarized intense laser fields
title_short Shepherd electron effects in multiple ionization of rubidium by circularly polarized intense laser fields
title_sort shepherd electron effects in multiple ionization of rubidium by circularly polarized intense laser fields
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s42005-023-01392-w
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AT yuhaijiang shepherdelectroneffectsinmultipleionizationofrubidiumbycircularlypolarizedintenselaserfields
AT jieliu shepherdelectroneffectsinmultipleionizationofrubidiumbycircularlypolarizedintenselaserfields