Pulse-shape effects in ionization of atomic hydrogen by short-pulse XUV intense laser radiation: A sensitivity study

Abstract

The displacement effect studied in a recent paper [Ivanov et al., Phys. Rev. A 90, 043401 (2014)] in atomic ionization by a short XUV pulse is investigated in more detail. It is shown that achieving a significant displacement critically depends on the assumption of a plateau in the envelope function of the electric field, and that the ramp-on is fine-tuned in such a way that a drift velocity generated during the ramp-on phase can increase this displacement further. Seemingly minor variations in the electric fields defined in slightly different ways cause significant changes in the final results, in particular regarding the angular-momentum distribution of the ejected electron. In light of such a strong sensitivity seen in the predictions made with idealized pulse shapes and the likely difficulties of preparing such pulses experimentally, an experimental realization of the displacement effect will likely be a major challenge.