........ published in NEWSLETTER # 52
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........ published in NEWSLETTER # 52
SUPER_INTENSE LASER_ATOM PHYSICS
by Dr. B. Piraux, Catholic University of Louvain, Louvain_la_Neuve (Belgium)
With the present development of super_intense pulsed lasers, it is now possible to study the response of an atom exposed to an electromagnetic field which exceeds the electron binding field. Under these conditions, the atom_laser interaction has a highly non_linear character which leads to unexpected effects as for example the generation by the atom of very high harmonics of the driving field, the strong field stabilization of one_ electron systems and the so_called above threshold ionisation of atoms and similar processes in molecules.
The present volume (NATO ASI SERIES B316) includes 40 papers presented at the NATO Advanced Research Workshop held in Han_sur_Lesse (Belgium) at the beginning of January 1993. The aim of the Workshop was to bring together experimentalists and theoreticians in order to evaluate our current understanding of the above effects and discuss new ones.
High order harmonic generation by atoms exposed to an intense laser field has attracted considerable attention. One of the main reasons why this process attracts so much interest lies in its potential applications as it opens the way towards the implementation of new coherent VUV of soft X_ray pulsed sources which complement the already existing ones. High order harmonics (up to 135 in the infrared region) are now generated by exposing light atoms (or ions) to an intense laser pulse radiation. In addition, our present knowledge of the properties of emission and propagation of harmonic fields has led to improvements in the practical efficiency of this process.
The process of ionisation of a single atom or ion exposed to a strong electromagnetic field is one of the most fundamental problems. Considerable progress has been made in understanding various aspects such as the stabilization of one electron systems in strong fields and the role of intermediate resonances during the interaction of the atom with the pulse. The most important theoretical achievement concerns the interaction of a two_electron system with a strong field; the initial results of the role of electron_electron correlation in the ionization mechanism were reported.
The study of laser_atom interactions is a rapidly expanding field. The present book is expected to be part of a set of ARW proceedings of meetings to be held during the years to come.
Reference books: B132, B171, B241, B287, B316, B317, C234, E265