2017/03/06 by Guillaume Duchateau, Duchateau, Guillaume
Physics and Astronomy · #Atomic Physics (physics.atom-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Laser-Matter Interactions and Applications #Quantum Physics (quant-ph) #Quantum chaos and dynamical systems #Spectroscopy and Quantum Chemical Studies
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1703.01871
openalex publication_date 2017/03/06 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
The derivation of approximate wave functions for an electron submitted to both a coulomb and a time-dependent laser electric fields, the so-called Coulomb-Volkov (CV) state, is addressed. Despite its derivation for continuum states does not exhibit any particular problem within the framework of the standard theory of quantum mechanics (QM), difficulties arise when considering an initially bound atomic state. Indeed the natural way of translating the unperturbed momentum by the laser vector potential is no longer possible since a bound state does not exhibit a plane wave form including explicitely a momentum. The use of a fractal space permits to naturally define a momentum for a bound wave function. Within this framework, it is shown how the derivation of laser-dressed bound states can be performed. Based on a generalized eikonal approach, a new expression for the laser-dressed states is also derived, fully symmetric relative to the continuum or bound nature of the initial unperturbed wave function. It includes an additional crossed term in the Volkov phase which was not obtained within the standard theory of quantum mechanics. The derivations within this fractal framework have highlighted other possible ways to derive approximate laser-dressed states in QM. After comparing the various obtained wave functions, an application to the prediction of the ionization probability of hydrogen targets by attosecond XUV pulses within the sudden approximation is provided. This approach allows to make predictions in various regimes depending on the laser intensity, going from the non-resonant multiphoton absorption to tunneling and barrier-suppression ionization.