We calculate the two-color ionization profile of atomic hydrogen in the presence of both a weak tunable high-frequency laser field and a low-frequency laser field of moderate intensity. The high-frequency spectroscopic light is used to probe the structure of Rydberg states dressed by the low-frequency field. We construct the photoionization spectrum from the sum of the resonance contributions by calculating the transition dipole moments between the initial state and the dressed Rydberg states, analogous to the study of photoionization in the presence of a dc field carried out by Alvarez and Silverstone [Phys. Rev. Lett. 63, 1364 (1989)].
This paper summarizes a long series of experiments that have been done on Rydberg states of Rb. The basic experimental technique that has been used is atomic-beam laser spectroscopy which allows both low-resolution and high-resolution studies. Excitation of Rydberg states is provided by single-photon absorption from a suitably frequency-doubled rhodamine
6G tunable laser. Detection is done by field ionization and ion counting. These techniques have allowed us to study the critical ionizing field, which has been found to follow classical, hydrogenic behavior closely. Rydberg states of Rb have been observed from
n=28 up to
n>100. High-resolution spectroscopic studies have led to measurement of the fine structure for
np levels located between
n=28 and
n=60, as well as the isotope shift of the ground state, $\ensuremath{\delta}\ensuremath{\nu}=(172\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}15)$ MHz. Anomalies in the intensity ratio of the doublet $5s\ensuremath{-}np$ transitions have been observed and interpreted as relativistic effects. Perturbations by weak and strong dc electric field are reported. In the case of weak electric fields it is possible to evaluate the polarizability. In the case of strong dc electric fields, new phenomena have been observed and analyzed. We also find experimental evidence of selective photoionization in the presence of an appropriate dc electric field, which could have some applications in laser isotope separation. Finally, we give the preliminary results of an experiment on the effect of a strong nonresonant electromagnetic field on high-lying Rydberg states.