Related papers: Coherent Phase Control of Internal Conversion in P…
Coherent control of internal conversion (IC) between the first ($S_1$) and second ($S_2$) singlet excited electronic states in pyrazine, where the $S_2$ state is populated from the ground singlet electronic state $S_0$ by weak field…
Laser-induced ionization is a fundamental tool for the frequency conversion of lasers into spectral regions so far inaccessible, including both extreme ultraviolet and terahertz. The low-frequency currents induced by laser-driven ionization…
How fast can a laser pulse ionize an atom? We address this question by considering pulses that carry a fixed time-integrated energy per-area, and finding those that achieve the double requirement of maximizing the ionization that they…
We describe how active feedback routines can be applied at limited repetition rate (5 Hz) to optimize high-power $>10$ TW) laser interactions with clustered gases. Optimization of x-ray production from an argon cluster jet, using a genetic…
Motivated by the major role funneling dynamics plays in light-harvesting processes, we built some laser control strategies inspired from basic mechanisms such as interference and kicks, and apply them to the case of pyrazine. We are…
Two-qubit gates in trapped-ion quantum computers are generated by applying spin-dependent forces that temporarily entangle the internal state of the ion with its motion. Laser pulses are carefully designed to generate a maximally entangling…
The shape of a few-cycle terahertz (THz) laser pulse can be optimized to provide control over conduction band populations in graphene. To demonstrate this control in a theoretical way, a spectral parametrization of the driving pulse using…
Broadband ultrashort terahertz (THz) pulses can be produced using plasma generation in a noble gas ionized by femtosecond two-color pulses. Here we demonstrate that, by using multiple-frequency laser pulses, one can obtain a waveform which…
We study the nonlinear and resonant process of two-photon ionization of atoms (He and H) in a pump-probe scheme. The pump pulse prepares the quantum system in a superposition of the ground state and an excited bound state. By varying the…
A near-infrared laser generates gain on transitions between the $\text{B}^{\text{2}} \Sigma_{\text{u}}^{\text{+}}$ and $\text{X}^{\text{2}} \Sigma_{\text{g}}^{\text{+}}$ states of the nitrogen molecular cation in part by coupling the…
Studies employing nonlinear interactions of THz pulses are nowadays a promising scientific research field. To capture these phenomena, THz pulses with energy ranging from hundreds of \muJ to the mJ level are necessary. However, techniques…
The development of ultra-intense laser-based sources of high energy ions is an important goal, with a variety of potential applications. One of the barriers to achieving this goal is the need to maximize the conversion efficiency from laser…
The excitation of THz radiation by the interaction of an ultra short laser pulse with the modes of a miniature corrugated plasma waveguide is considered. The axially corrugated waveguide supports the electromagnetic (EM) modes with…
We present a theoretical investigation of terahertz (THz) generation in laser-induced gas plasmas. The work is strongly motivated by recent experimental results on micro-plasmas, but our general findings are not limited to such a…
We study ultrafast ionization dynamics using orthogonally polarized two-color (OTC) laser pulses involving the resonant "first plus second" ($\omega+2\omega$) scheme. The scheme is illustrated by numerical simulations of the time-dependent…
Trapped ions are a well-studied and promising system for the realization of a scalable quantum computer. Faster quantum gates would greatly improve the applicability of such a system and allow for greater flexibility in the number of…
We propose a methodology to design optimal pulses for achieving quantum optimal control on molecular systems. Our approach constrains pulse shapes to linear combinations of a fixed number of experimentally relevant pulse functions. Quantum…
Understanding and controlling the electronic as well as ro-vibrational motion and, thus, the entire chemical dynamics in molecules is the ultimate goal of ultrafast laser and imaging science. In photochemistry, laser-induced dissociation…
Applications ranging from nonlinear terahertz spectroscopy to remote sensing require broadband and intense THz radiation which can be generated by focusing two-color laser pulses into a gas. In this setup, THz radiation originates from the…
We present a combined theoretical and experimental study of spatio-temporal propagation effects in terahertz (THz) generation in gases using two-color ionizing laser pulses. The observed strong broadening of the THz spectra with increasing…