Suppression of Multiphoton Ionization with Circularly Polarized Coherent Light

P. H. Bucksbaum; M. Bashkansky; R. R. Freeman; T. J. McIlrath; L. F. DiMauro

doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.56.2590

Suppression of Multiphoton Ionization with Circularly Polarized Coherent Light

P. H. Bucksbaum, M. Bashkansky, R. R. Freeman, T. J. McIlrath, and L. F. DiMauro

Phys. Rev. Lett. 56, 2590 – Published 16 June 1986

Abstract

Multiphoton ionization in xenon has been studied with 1064-nm circularly polarized coherent light, producing electrons with energies up to 15 eV. A strong suppression of the cross section is observed for electrons below 4 eV, but not for linearly polarized light at the same intensity. We show that if the electrons are emitted in single-step, nonresonant coherent processes, rather than stepwise excitation, the centrifugal potential barrier in the atomic Hamiltonian produces this suppression.

Received 25 February 1986

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.56.2590

Authors & Affiliations

P. H. Bucksbaum, M. Bashkansky^*, R. R. Freeman, and T. J. McIlrath^†

AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, New Jersey 07974

L. F. DiMauro

Department of Physics and Astronomy, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803

^*Also at Physics Department, Columbia University, New York, N.Y. 10027.
^†On leave from Institute for Physical Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, Md. 20742.