Dissecting subcycle interference in photoelectron holography

Nicholas Werby, Andrew S. Maxwell, Ruaridh Forbes, Philip H. Bucksbaum, and Carla Figueira de Morisson Faria

Phys. Rev. A 104, 013109 – Published 19 July 2021

Abstract

Multipath holographic interference in strong-field quantum tunnel ionization is key to revealing subangstrom attosecond dynamics for molecular movies. This critical subcycle motion is often obscured by longer timescale effects such as ring-shaped patterns that appear in above-threshold ionization (ATI). In the present work, we overcome this problem by combining two techniques in theory and experimental analysis: unit-cell averaging and time-filtering data and simulations. Together these suppress ATI rings and enable an unprecedented highly detailed quantitative match between strong-field ionization experiments in argon and the Coulomb-quantum orbit strong-field approximation (CQSFA) theory. Velocity map images reveal fine modulations on the holographic spiderlike interference fringes that form near the polarization axis. CQSFA theory traces this to the interference of three types of electron pathways. The level of agreement between experiment and theory allows sensitive determination of quantum phase differences and symmetries, providing an important tool for quantitative dynamical imaging in quantum systems.

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Received 5 March 2021
Accepted 3 June 2021

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.104.013109

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Holography Multiphoton or tunneling ionization & excitation Strong-field-induced spectra Ultrafast phenomena

Quantum orbits theory Strong-field approximation

Atomic, Molecular & Optical

Authors & Affiliations

Nicholas Werby^1,2,*, Andrew S. Maxwell^3,4,*, Ruaridh Forbes^1,2,5, Philip H. Bucksbaum^1,2,6, and Carla Figueira de Morisson Faria^4,†

¹Stanford PULSE Institute, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
²Department of Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA
³Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, 08860 Castelldefels (Barcelona), Spain
⁴Department of Physics & Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom
⁵Linac Coherent Light Source, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
⁶Department of Applied Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA

^*These authors contributed equally to this work.
^†c.faria@ucl.ac.uk

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Vol. 104, Iss. 1 — July 2021

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