Photoemission spectroscopy with high-intensity short-wavelength lasers

Abstract

We theoretically study the process of photoelectron emission from the helium atom using a high-intensity short-wavelength laser at a resonance condition of the residual singly charged ion. Photoionization followed by strong resonance coupling in the ion leads to a change in the photoelectron spectrum due to Rabi oscillations in the residual ion. Similarly to resonance fluorescence at high laser intensity, the photoelectron spectrum at high intensities evolves into a multipeaked structure. The number of peaks in the photoelectron spectrum is related to the number of Rabi cycles following the photoionization process. Moreover, the strong laser-induced coupling to nonresonant states of the residual ion has an imprint on the photoelectron spectrum, leading to additional, isolated peaks at the lower- or higher-energy sides. The effect should be observable at current seeded extreme ultraviolet (XUV) free-electron lasers and persists after volume integration in a realistic experimental geometry.