Effects of imperfect unipolarity on the ionization of Rydberg atoms by subpicosecond half-cycle pulses

Photoinduced charge currents in mesoscopic rings

The temporal and spatial controllability of charge distribution in submicron structures opens new avenues for potential applications and for the understanding of nonequilibrium processes. Here we suggest a novel way to trigger and control within picoseconds charge currents and magnetic moments in nanoscopic and mesoscopic ring structures by applying two shaped, time-delayed light pulses. Our quantum dynamic calculations show that the magnitude and direction of the induced currents are tunable by varying the time delay and strengths of the pulses. Furthermore, in an array of rings desirable magnetic orders are generated depending on the ring sizes and particle number.

Transitions driven by a missing frequency

We demonstrate an intricate combination of strong and weak interactions of a broadband half-cycle pulse with Rydberg atoms. A transition, which is resonant with a frequency that was taken out of the frequency spectrum, can be enhanced. In the experiment, the broadband ultrashort terahertz half-cycle pulse propagates through water vapor, which absorbs on discrete lines in the spectrum, thus removing frequencies from the spectrum. The resulting pulse interacts with a rubidium Rydberg atom, which has a resonant transition with one of the missing frequencies. Under certain conditions, the transition probability is enhanced although the associated frequency was missing in the spectrum.

Coherent control of rotational wave-packet dynamics via fractional revivals

We show (i) how the evolution of a wave packet created from an initial thermal ensemble can be controlled by manipulating interferences during the wave packet's fractional revivals and (ii) how the wave-packet evolution can be mapped onto the dynamics of a few-state system, where the number of states is determined by the amount of information one wants to track about the wave packet in the phase space. We illustrate our approach by (i) switching off and on field-free molecular axis alignment induced by a strong laser pulse and (ii) converting alignment into field-free orientation, starting with rotationally cold or hot systems.

Rydberg state ionization by half-cycle-pulse excitation: strong kicks create slow electrons

The asymptotic velocity distribution of electrons ionized in half-cycle-pulse excitation of high Rydberg states (n=34), placed in a static electric field, is studied using electron velocity-map imaging. At weak half-cycle pulse strengths, the electrons escape over the saddle point in the potential. For strong half-cycle pulses, the electrons are emitted in the direction of the field kick. The much slower and less intense half cycle of opposite polarity, which necessarily follows the main half-cycle pulse, strongly affects the momentum distribution and reduces the excess energy of the electrons significantly.

Displacing Rydberg electrons: the mono-cycle nature of half-cycle pulses

A THz "half-cycle" pulse is a fast ( <1 ps) unipolar pulse, followed by a slow unipolar pulse of opposite polarity. We found that the interaction of such THz pulses with very high Rydberg states results in a displacement of the electron within the atom, while the ionization is strongly suppressed. In classical terms: the first fast unipolar feature corresponds to a start kick of the Rydberg electron, while the second unipolar feature acts as a stop kick. A semiclassical model is presented which qualitatively reproduces the ionization suppression and redistribution.