Electron Rydberg wave packets in one-dimensional atoms

John A. Yeazell

Claude Fabre, S. Haroche

Rita Veilande, Imants Bersons

We investigate many characteristic features of revival and fractional revival phenomena via derived analytic expressions for an autocorrelation function of a one-dimensional Rydberg atom with weighting probabilities modelled by a Gaussian or a Lorentzian distribution. The fractional revival phenomenon in the ionization probabilities of a one-dimensional Rydberg atom irradiated by two short half-cycle pulses is also studied. When many states are involved in the formation of the wave packet, the revival is lower and broader than the initial wave packet and the fractional revivals overlap and disappear with time.

Supriya Chatterjee, Asit Saha, B. Talukdar

We study revival and fractional revival phenomena of wave packets in a one-dimensional Rydberg atom irradiated by two time-delayed half-cycle pulses using an autocorrelation function characterized by electronic transition probabilities as weighting factors rather than modeling them by a Gaussian or Lorentzian distribution.If the momentum (q2) delivered to the atom by the second kick is much smaller than that (q1) imparted by the first one, the times of revival and fractional revival coincide with those of the single kicked atom.For q2 ≥ q 1 4 appearance of revival and fractional revival depends on both the values of q2 and time delay t1 between the pulses but more sensitively on t1.The number of fractional revivals tends to become numerous as the value of t1 increases.

B. Wyker, F. B. Dunning, Carlos O Reinhold +2 more

Frederic Hummel, Kevin Keiler, Peter Schmelcher

We investigate the quantum dynamics of ultra-long-range trilobite molecules exposed to homogeneous electric fields. A trilobite molecule consists of a Rydberg atom and a ground-state atom, which is trapped at large internuclear distances in an oscillatory potential due to scattering of the Rydberg electron off the ground-state atom. Within the Born-Oppenheimer approximation, we derive an analytic expression for the two-dimensional adiabatic electronic potential energy surface in weak electric fields valid up to 500 V/m. This is used to unravel the molecular quantum dynamics employing the multiconfigurational time-dependent Hartree method. Quenches of the electric field are performed to trigger the wave-packet dynamics including the case of field inversion. Depending on the initial wave packet, we observe radial intrawell and interwell oscillations as well as angular oscillations and rotations of the respective one-body probability densities. Opportunities to control the molecular configuration are identified, a specific example being the possibility to superimpose different molecular bond lengths by a series of periodic quenches of the electric field.