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Optics Letters

Streak camera operating in the mid infrared

Marcel Drabbels, Lambertus D. Noordam

Published Sep 15, 1997• 14 citations
Publisher

Abstract

An atomic streak camera has been constructed that operates from the near to the far infrared. The photocathode used in conventional streak cameras for the conversion of photons to electrons has been replaced by gas-phase atoms in a Rydberg state. The low binding energy of the electron in a Rydberg atom combined with the large photoionization cross section of a Rydberg atom makes Rydberg atoms suitable for use in an infrared streak camera. Operation of the streak camera is demonstrated at 2.6 microm, well beyond the spectral range of any conventional streak camera.

DOI
10.1364/ol.22.001436

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An atomic streak camera has been constructed that operates from the near to the far infrared. The photocathode used in conventional streak cameras for the conversion of photons to electrons has been replaced by gas-phase atoms in a Rydberg state. The low binding energy of the electron in a Rydberg atom combined with the large photoionization cross section of a Rydberg atom makes Rydberg atoms suitable for use in an infrared streak camera. Operation of the streak camera is demonstrated at 2.6 microm, well beyond the spectral range of any conventional streak camera.
Transitions from bound atomic Rydberg Stark states in a static electric field to autoionizing Rydberg states above the electric-field-induced ionization threshold are studied using a broadband, tunable free-electron laser (photon energy 160--1400 ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$, pulse duration $\ensuremath{\sim}1$ ps) and compared with multichannel quantum defect theory calculations. An atomic streak camera is used to record the time-resolved electron emission transients of the autoionizing atoms. For Stark states located on the downfield side of the potential, the far-infrared ionization spectrum is found to be smooth and the electron emission prompt (<2(<2(<2 ps), whereas for Stark states located on the upfield side, the far-infrared spectrum has sharp resonances, and the lifetime of the quasicontinuum states is considerably longer. The electron-emission transients from optical ionization of ground-state atoms are compared to transients from far-infrared ionization of Rydberg atoms, showing that the angular motion of the wave packet is responsible for the ionization dynamics for both cases, but different coherent superpositions of angular momentum states are excited depending on the initial state. Finally, we discuss the feasability of using Rydberg atoms as an ultrafast far-infrared detector, starting from a downfield state, or as a wavelength-selective detector, starting from an upfield state.
Among the interesting phenomena of atoms in strong laser fields is the strong deformation of the electron wavefunction due to the laser field. This deformation results in a reduced binding energy and inhibition of photoionization [Gavrilla and co-workers]. Recently this stabilization phenomena was observed using visible light of 600 nm. The relevant parameter in this kind of experiments is the quiver excursion a0 of the electron due to the oscillating e.m. field: (1) α0 = √I/ω2 where I is the intensity and w the angular frequency of the light field.
We examine strong field atomic physics in a wavelength region (3-4 microns) where very little work has previously been done. The soft photon energy allows the exploration of one-electron atoms with low binding energies (alkali metals). We find that photoionization spectra differ from rare gas studies at shorter wavelengths due to more complex ion core potentials. Harmonic generation is studied, and we find that harmonic bandwidths are consistent with theory and the possibility of compression to pulse widths much shorter than that of the driving pulse. Harmonic yields in the visible and UV are sufficient for a complete study of their amplitude and phase characteristics.
A semiclassical model is developed to understand the electronic dynamics in the low-energy attosecond streaking. Under a relatively strong infrared (IR) pulse, the low-energy part of photoelectrons initialized by a single attosecond pulse (SAP) can either rescatter with the ionic core and induce interferences structures in the momentum spectra of the ionized electrons or be recaptured into the Rydberg states. The Coulomb potential plays essential roles in both the electron rescattering and recapturing processes. We find that by changing the time delay between the SAP and the IR pulse, the photoelectrons yield or the population of the Rydberg states can be effectively controlled. The present study demonstrates a fascinating way to steer the electron motion in the continuum.