Journal of Physics B Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics
Dependence on relative phase for bichromatically driven atoms
Peter M. Koch, S. A. Zelazny, Leszek Sirko
Abstract
We consider the interaction of atoms with a pulse of a linearly polarized electric field consisting of two phase-locked frequencies whose ratio ω H /ω L is the ratio of arbitrary integers h / l , with h > l . If the electric amplitudes vary in time, they do so with the same slow envelope. The relative phase can be used as a control parameter via variation of the phase ϕ H of ω H or ϕ L of ω L . We derive the physically important ranges of relative phase for total-yield processes as a function of h : l ; they depend on whether h , l are both odd or only one is odd. We tabulate a variety of relevant phase-dependent results for all h : l from 2:1 through 8:7. We use calculations and experimental data for helium and hydrogen Rydberg atoms driven by a bichromatic microwave field to confirm the physically important ranges of ϕ H and ϕ L for a few h : l ratios. Two experimental examples taken from the literature for the interactions of atoms with sub-picosecond, bichromatic laser pulses also confirm our conclusions.