Disentangling Rescattering Interference Structures in High Fidelity Laser-Induced Photoelectron Imaging

POSTER

Abstract

Velocity-map imaging (VMI) is a useful tool for probing the dynamic structures of atoms and molecules. This poster presents high fidelity VMI data of the laser-induced photoelectron momentum spectrum of argon gas. By employing an energy filtering with Legendre decomposition algorithm we filter out the characteristic above threshold ionization (ATI) rings, resulting in the approximate single cycle direct ionization spectrum. We observe angle and energy dependent interference patterns in the rescattering regime and we suggest that these patterns are from the interference of long trajectory rescattered electrons. We compare our data to calculations of an electron elastically scattering from a Hartree-Fock ion target and find strong agreement with our measurements at high electron momenta. Our methodologies of data acquisition and processing greatly improve the fidelity of VMI measurements, and may uncover momentum interference structures that are unexplored in earlier studies, further unraveling strong field ionization processes.

*This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences (BES), Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences Division, AMOS Program.

Authors

  • Nicholas Werby

    • Department of Physics at Stanford University, PULSE Institute

  • Adi Natan

    • PULSE Institute, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory

  • Ruaridh Forbes

    • Stanford University
    • PULSE Institute, Stanford University
    • Department of Physics at Stanford University, PULSE Institute

  • Robert Lucchese

    • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
    • Lawrence Berkeley National Lab
    • Lawrence Berkeley National Lab.

  • Philip Bucksbaum

    • PULSE Institute/Stanford University
    • Stanford PULSE Institute, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
    • PULSE Institute, Stanford University
    • Stanford University
    • Department of Physics and Applied Physics at Stanford University, PULSE Institute
    • Stanford PULSE Institute, Stanford University and SLAC