State-selective electric-field ionization of Rydberg positronium

Abstract

We report experiments in which positronium (Ps) atoms, optically excited to Rydberg states with principal quantum numbers $n$ in the range 18--25, were selectively ionized by both static and pulsed electric fields. The experiments were modeled using Monte Carlo simulations that include tunnel ionization rates calculated for hydrogen and scaled by the Ps reduced mass. Our measurements exhibit a small disagreement with the calculated tunnel ionization rates. Despite this we show that the electric fields in which different Ps states are ionized are sufficiently separated to allow selective field-ionization methods to be used in typical experimental conditions.