Atomic photoionization by spatiotemporal optical vortex pulses

Yongkun Chen, Yueming Zhou, Min Li, Kunlong Liu, Marcelo F. Ciappina, and Peixiang Lu

Phys. Rev. A 107, 033112 – Published 20 March 2023

Abstract

Electromagnetic waves with a helical-like wavefront are known as optical vortices. One of their main characteristics is a phase structure that has a circulation around a singularity and that they carry orbital angular momentum (OAM). OAM is a fundamental property that governs the interaction of these sources with matter. In the present paper, we study the electron dynamics driven by a so-called spatiotemporal optical vortex (STOV). Contrary to the conventional optical vortices, a STOV carries transverse OAM. By designing a streakinglike technique, we aim to fully characterize the OAM of the STOV. Using both quantum mechanical and semiclassical models, we are able to dissect the spatially resolved photoelectron energy spectra and accurately retrieve the OAM. Our approach paves the way toward a complete understanding of the interaction of complex spatiotemporal light fields with atomic targets.

Received 5 December 2022
Accepted 8 March 2023

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.107.033112

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Angular momentum of light Atomic & molecular processes in external fields Optical vortices Single- and few-photon ionization & excitation

Atomic, Molecular & Optical

Authors & Affiliations

Yongkun Chen ¹, Yueming Zhou ^1,*, Min Li ¹, Kunlong Liu ¹, Marcelo F. Ciappina ^2,3,4,†, and Peixiang Lu^1,5

¹School of Physics and Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
²Department of Physics, Guangdong Technion—Israel Institute of Technology, 241 Daxue Road, Shantou, Guangdong 515063, China
³Technion—Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
⁴Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Materials and Technologies for Energy Conversion, Guangdong Technion—Israel Institute of Technology, 241 Daxue Road, Shantou, Guangdong 515063, China
⁵Optics Valley Laboratory, Wuhan 430074, China

^*Corresponding author: zhouymhust@hust.edu.cn
^†Corresponding author: marcelo.ciappina@gtiit.edu.cn

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Issue

Vol. 107, Iss. 3 — March 2023

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