This article is cited in 4 papers

Interaction of laser radiation with matter. Laser plasma

Photoionization of a gas by an ultrashort laser pulse with two-photon excitation of an intermediate level

È. M. Belenov, P. G. Kryukov, A. V. Nazarkin, I. V. Smetanin


Abstract: Photoionization of a gas by a laser pulse propagating under conditions of a coherent two-photon interaction with the atoms (or molecules) of a medium is discussed. It is shown that the small yield of electrons for small photoionization cross sections remains small even in a strong field when the cross section is large. The reason is an ionization-induced broadening of an intermediate level. As a result, an extremum appears in the ionization yield as a function of the cross section. It is also shown that the two-photon self-induced transparency for the field of the pulse at this transition can significantly decrease the energy cost of ionizing the gas.

UDC: 621.373.826:537.56

PACS: 32.80.Fb, 32.80.Rm

Received: 30.07.1992

 English version: Soviet Journal of Quantum Electronics, 1992, 22:12, 1113–1116

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