Pulse-duration dependent sequential double ionization by elliptically polarized laser pulses

Abstract

Using a fully classical model, we have studied sequential double ionization of argon driven by elliptically polarized laser pulses at intensities well in the over-barrier ionization region. The results show that the joint electron momentum distributions in the minor elliptical direction depend strongly on the pulse duration. From pulse number N = 4 to 10, the clustering regions of the joint electron momentum increase with the pulse duration. For even larger pulse durations, the clustering region does not increase further but the population of the joint electron momentum in these regions changes with the pulse duration. Back analysis of double ionization trajectories shows the phenomenon of multiple ionization bursts and the pulse duration-dependent multiple ionization bursts of the second electron is responsible for the evolution of the joint electron momentum distribution with the pulse duration.