Linear optical absorption spectra of mesoscopic structures in intense THz fields: Free-particle properties

We theoretically study the effect of THz radiation on the linear optical absorption spectra of semiconductor structures. A general theoretical framework, based on nonequilibrium Green functions, is formulated and applied to the calculation of linear optical absorption spectrum for several nonequilibrium mesoscopic structures. We show that a blueshift occurs and sidebands appear in bulklike structures, i.e., the dynamical Franz-Keldysh effect [A.-P. Jauho and K. Johnsen, Phys. Rev. Lett. 76, 4576 (1996)]. An analytic calculation leads to the prediction that in the case of superlattices distinct stable steps appear in the absorption spectrum when conditions for dynamical localization are met.