Ionization and recombination times of the long trajectory in high-order harmonic generation

Abstract

Measuring the ionization and recombination times in high-order harmonic generation driven by strong laser fields is of fundamental importance in attosecond science and vital for assessing the temporal accuracy of trajectory-resolved high-harmonic spectroscopy. We investigate the effect of the electron-core interaction on the ionization and recombination times of the long trajectory in high-order harmonic generation. Using a classical model and the analytical $R$-matrix theory for helium, it is found that the attractive interaction leads to a 30-as shift of the ionization times for the long trajectory. By numerically solving the time-dependent Schr\"odinger equation for a helium atom model, we demonstrate that this small time shift can be probed by using orthogonally polarized two-color fields with high probe frequencies.