Laser-induced detachment processes in an electric field

Bo Gao and Anthony F. Starace
Phys. Rev. A 42, 5580 – Published 1 November 1990
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Abstract

An analytic momentum-space wave function for an electron in both laser and static uniform electric fields is presented. It is used to obtain analytic multiphoton detachment cross sections in a static, uniform electric field which include effects of static-field-induced electron-photon interactions. These general results are not restricted to weak laser intensities or to weak static-field strengths and depend only on (a) the electric dipole approximation and (b) the approximation that final-state electron-atom interactions are ignored. Four specific predictions of our general formulas for the most interesting case of linearly polarized light polarized along the static-field direction are presented for weakly bound electrons initially in an s state. First, the effects of a weak static electric field on N-photon detachment cross sections near threshold are shown to be described by two modulation factors, one for odd N and one for even N, which depend only on a scaled energy. Second, for photodetachment in a static electric field, effects of static-field-induced electron-photon interactions are demonstrated. Third, the lifetime against field ionization is presented. Fourth, the cross section for electric-field-induced stimulated emission is presented. Numerical results for the latter three effects are presented for the H ion. The simpler case of circularly polarized light directed along the static-electric-field direction is treated briefly. In particular, we show for this case that the static- and laser-field effects are uncoupled and that the near-threshold, weak static-electric-field modulation factors for the N-photon detachment cross sections are dependent on N.

  • Received 28 June 1990

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.42.5580

©1990 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Bo Gao and Anthony F. Starace

  • Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska 68588-0111

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Issue

Vol. 42, Iss. 9 — November 1990

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