Ionization of two-electron atom (xenon) studied by Bohmian mechanics theory* *Project supported by the Jilin Provincial Science and Technology Development Plan Program for Excellent Youth Talents, China (Grant No. 20180520174JH) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11704145, 11904050, 11774129, 11747007, 11534004, and 12074145).

Abstract

The ionization dynamics of two-electron atom in an intense laser field is studied by the Bohmian mechanics (BM) theory, and the xenon atomic potential function is used as a model. The single ionization process and double ionization process are calculated by the BM theory and their results are in good agreement with those calculated by numerically solving the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. The analyses of the types, trajectories, and forces of Bohmian particles (BPs) undergoing the single and double ionizations indicate that the re-collision process accounts for a considerable proportion in the singly ionized cases. Furthermore, the analysis of the work done by the external force acting on the BPs shows that the quantum force plays an important role in the re-collision process. This work is helpful in understanding the ionization of two-electron atom in an intense laser field.