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Kim HY, Garg M, Mandal S, Seiffert L, Fennel T, Goulielmakis E. Attosecond field emission. Nature 2023; 613:662-666. [PMID: 36697865 PMCID: PMC9876796 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05577-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2022] [Accepted: 11/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Field emission of electrons underlies great advances in science and technology, ranging from signal processing at ever higher frequencies1 to imaging of the atomic-scale structure of matter2 with picometre resolution. The advancing of electron microscopy techniques to enable the complete visualization of matter on the native spatial (picometre) and temporal (attosecond) scales of electron dynamics calls for techniques that can confine and examine the field emission on sub-femtosecond time intervals. Intense laser pulses have paved the way to this end3,4 by demonstrating femtosecond confinement5,6 and sub-optical cycle control7,8 of the optical field emission9 from nanostructured metals. Yet the measurement of attosecond electron pulses has remained elusive. We used intense, sub-cycle light transients to induce optical field emission of electron pulses from tungsten nanotips and a weak replica of the same transient to directly investigate the emission dynamics in real time. Access to the temporal properties of the electron pulses rescattering off the tip surface, including the duration τ = (53 as ± 5 as) and chirp, and the direct exploration of nanoscale near fields open new prospects for research and applications at the interface of attosecond physics and nano-optics.
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Affiliation(s)
- H. Y. Kim
- grid.10493.3f0000000121858338Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - M. Garg
- grid.419552.e0000 0001 1015 6736Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - S. Mandal
- grid.10493.3f0000000121858338Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - L. Seiffert
- grid.10493.3f0000000121858338Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - T. Fennel
- grid.10493.3f0000000121858338Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - E. Goulielmakis
- grid.10493.3f0000000121858338Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, Rostock, Germany
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Ciappina MF, Pérez-Hernández JA, Landsman AS, Okell WA, Zherebtsov S, Förg B, Schötz J, Seiffert L, Fennel T, Shaaran T, Zimmermann T, Chacón A, Guichard R, Zaïr A, Tisch JWG, Marangos JP, Witting T, Braun A, Maier SA, Roso L, Krüger M, Hommelhoff P, Kling MF, Krausz F, Lewenstein M. Attosecond physics at the nanoscale. Rep Prog Phys 2017; 80:054401. [PMID: 28059773 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6633/aa574e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Recently two emerging areas of research, attosecond and nanoscale physics, have started to come together. Attosecond physics deals with phenomena occurring when ultrashort laser pulses, with duration on the femto- and sub-femtosecond time scales, interact with atoms, molecules or solids. The laser-induced electron dynamics occurs natively on a timescale down to a few hundred or even tens of attoseconds (1 attosecond = 1 as = 10-18 s), which is comparable with the optical field. For comparison, the revolution of an electron on a 1s orbital of a hydrogen atom is ∼152 as. On the other hand, the second branch involves the manipulation and engineering of mesoscopic systems, such as solids, metals and dielectrics, with nanometric precision. Although nano-engineering is a vast and well-established research field on its own, the merger with intense laser physics is relatively recent. In this report on progress we present a comprehensive experimental and theoretical overview of physics that takes place when short and intense laser pulses interact with nanosystems, such as metallic and dielectric nanostructures. In particular we elucidate how the spatially inhomogeneous laser induced fields at a nanometer scale modify the laser-driven electron dynamics. Consequently, this has important impact on pivotal processes such as above-threshold ionization and high-order harmonic generation. The deep understanding of the coupled dynamics between these spatially inhomogeneous fields and matter configures a promising way to new avenues of research and applications. Thanks to the maturity that attosecond physics has reached, together with the tremendous advance in material engineering and manipulation techniques, the age of atto-nanophysics has begun, but it is in the initial stage. We present thus some of the open questions, challenges and prospects for experimental confirmation of theoretical predictions, as well as experiments aimed at characterizing the induced fields and the unique electron dynamics initiated by them with high temporal and spatial resolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- M F Ciappina
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, Hans-Kopfermann-Str. 1, D-85748 Garching, Germany. Institute of Physics of the ASCR, ELI-Beamlines project, Na Slovance 2, 18221 Prague, Czech Republic
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Seiffert L, Süßmann F, Zherebtsov S, Rupp P, Peltz C, Rühl E, Kling MF, Fennel T. Competition of single and double rescattering in the strong-field photoemission from dielectric nanospheres. Appl Phys B 2016; 122:101. [PMID: 32355418 PMCID: PMC7175736 DOI: 10.1007/s00340-016-6369-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2015] [Accepted: 02/22/2016] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Nanostructures exposed to ultrashort waveform-controlled laser pulses enable the generation of enhanced and highly localized near fields with adjustable local electric field evolution. Here, we study dielectric SiO2 nanospheres (d = 100-700 nm) under strong carrier-envelope phase-controlled few-cycle laser pulses and perform a systematic theoretical analysis of the resulting near-field driven photoemission. In particular, we analyze the impacts of charge interaction and local field ellipticity on the near-field driven electron acceleration. Our semiclassical transport simulations predict strong quenching of the electron emission and enhanced electron energies due to the ionization induced space charge. Though single surface backscattering remains the main emission process for the considered parameter range, we find a substantial contribution of double rescattering that increases with sphere size and becomes dominant near the cutoff energy for the largest investigated spheres. The growing importance of the double recollision process is traced back to the increasing local field ellipticity via trajectory analysis and the corresponding initial to final state correlation. Finally, we compare the carrier-envelope phase-dependent emission of single and double recollision electrons and find that both exhibit a characteristic directional switching behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- L. Seiffert
- Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, 18051 Rostock, Germany
| | - F. Süßmann
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, 85748 Garching, Germany
- Physik Department, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - S. Zherebtsov
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, 85748 Garching, Germany
- Physik Department, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - P. Rupp
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, 85748 Garching, Germany
- Physik Department, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - C. Peltz
- Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, 18051 Rostock, Germany
| | - E. Rühl
- Physical Chemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - M. F. Kling
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, 85748 Garching, Germany
- Physik Department, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - T. Fennel
- Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, 18051 Rostock, Germany
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Süßmann F, Seiffert L, Zherebtsov S, Mondes V, Stierle J, Arbeiter M, Plenge J, Rupp P, Peltz C, Kessel A, Trushin SA, Ahn B, Kim D, Graf C, Rühl E, Kling MF, Fennel T. Field propagation-induced directionality of carrier-envelope phase-controlled photoemission from nanospheres. Nat Commun 2015; 6:7944. [PMID: 26264422 PMCID: PMC4557130 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms8944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2015] [Accepted: 06/27/2015] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Near-fields of non-resonantly laser-excited nanostructures enable strong localization of ultrashort light fields and have opened novel routes to fundamentally modify and control electronic strong-field processes. Harnessing spatiotemporally tunable near-fields for the steering of sub-cycle electron dynamics may enable ultrafast optoelectronic devices and unprecedented control in the generation of attosecond electron and photon pulses. Here we utilize unsupported sub-wavelength dielectric nanospheres to generate near-fields with adjustable structure and study the resulting strong-field dynamics via photoelectron imaging. We demonstrate field propagation-induced tunability of the emission direction of fast recollision electrons up to a regime, where nonlinear charge interaction effects become dominant in the acceleration process. Our analysis supports that the timing of the recollision process remains controllable with attosecond resolution by the carrier-envelope phase, indicating the possibility to expand near-field-mediated control far into the realm of high-field phenomena. The localized enhancement of laser light in optical near-fields of nanostructures enables the steering of ultrafast electronic motion. Here, the authors employ field propagation in nanospheres to obtain directional tunability and attosecond control of near-field-induced strong-field photoemission.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Süßmann
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, D-85748 Garching, Germany.,Physics Department, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, D-85748 Garching, Germany
| | - L Seiffert
- Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, D-18051 Rostock, Germany
| | - S Zherebtsov
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, D-85748 Garching, Germany.,Physics Department, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, D-85748 Garching, Germany
| | - V Mondes
- Physical Chemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 3, D-14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - J Stierle
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, D-85748 Garching, Germany
| | - M Arbeiter
- Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, D-18051 Rostock, Germany
| | - J Plenge
- Physical Chemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 3, D-14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - P Rupp
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, D-85748 Garching, Germany.,Physics Department, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, D-85748 Garching, Germany
| | - C Peltz
- Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, D-18051 Rostock, Germany
| | - A Kessel
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, D-85748 Garching, Germany
| | - S A Trushin
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, D-85748 Garching, Germany
| | - B Ahn
- Department of Physics, Center for Attosecond Science and Technology, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang 790-784, South Korea.,Max Planck Center for Attosecond Science, Max Planck POSTECH/KOREA Res. Init., Pohang 790-784, South Korea
| | - D Kim
- Department of Physics, Center for Attosecond Science and Technology, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang 790-784, South Korea.,Max Planck Center for Attosecond Science, Max Planck POSTECH/KOREA Res. Init., Pohang 790-784, South Korea
| | - C Graf
- Physical Chemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 3, D-14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - E Rühl
- Physical Chemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 3, D-14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - M F Kling
- Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, D-85748 Garching, Germany.,Physics Department, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, D-85748 Garching, Germany.,Department of Physics, Center for Attosecond Science and Technology, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang 790-784, South Korea.,J.R. Macdonald Laboratory, Physics Department, Kansas-State University, Manhattan, Kansas, USA
| | - T Fennel
- Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, D-18051 Rostock, Germany
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