We present experimental results of harmonic generation using a 1-ps 1015-W/cm2 Nd-glass laser. We see up to the 29th harmonic in Xe, 57th in Ar, and at least up to the 135th harmonic in Ne (160 eV), being then limited by our monochromator's resolution. The conversion efficiencies in Xe, Ar, Ne, and He are compared and different ways of optimizing the number of photons by defocusing the laser beam

The authors have calculated two-photon electron detachment cross sections of the 5p shell of negative iodine in the photon energy region 0-1 Ryd. The results cover the region from the two-photon ionisation threshold of I - at 0.12 Ryd to well above the one-photon ionisation threshold of neutral iodine at about 0.8 Ryd. They demonstrate the importance of many-electron screening effects and double e

We investigate different processes which may be responsible for ejection of two electrons from the external shell of xenon through the absorption of two and three photons, namely two-photon direct double ionization and three-photon sequential double ionization via the ion in an excited state or in the ground state. We calculate the cross sections of the ionization processes involved, using many-bo

The authors present calculations of the two-photon one-electron ionisation of the 5p shell of xenon including non-linear response. Screening effects are described within the random-phase approximation (RPA). The authors use both a local-density approximation (LDA) and a Hartree-Fock average basis set. They describe a large energy region from the two-photon ionisation threshold to above the one-pho

The recent advances concerning high-order harmonic generation processes in strong laser fields are discussed. We show how the width of the plateau inherent to the production of high harmonics varies with the pulse width, the laser wavelength and the atomic medium. Phase matching effects are discussed in terms of coherence length owing to the laser focusing. Finally, we show that the idea of genera

We apply the random-phase approximation to two-photon ionization. We develop a formalism which, by means of screened electron-photon interactions, includes the nonlinear response and, in particular, double-excitation processes. The theory is illustrated by numerical calculations of the two-photon ionization cross section of the external (5p and 5s) shell of xenon, over a large energy range: from t

We present experimental results of harmonic generation at 1064 nm using a 36-ps neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet laser tightly focused in a gas jet of xenon. The harmonic yields are studied as a function of the position of the focus in the jet at several laser intensities and as a function of intensity at several focus positions. These results bring information about how the high harmonics

We review the main experimental results obtained in the multielectron multiphoton ionization of rare gases. Multiple ionization is interpretated as a sequential process. We study the influence of many‐electron effects in multiphoton ionization within the framework of the random phase approximation. This is applied to a calculation of the two‐photon ionization cross section of xenon. Finally, the r

Multielectron ionization of Xe is described in terms of multistep processes, driven by a laser field which is screened by the motion of the outer 5p shell. In stepwise multiple ionization of the 5p shell, screening is successively reduced. The effective, local intensity will therefore increase during the stripping of the outer shell. In the 4d inner-shell region the effective intensity is very low

We study the influence of many-electron effects in multiphoton ionization within the framework of diagrammatic many-body perturbation theory. We renormalize the electron-dipole coupling by summing to infinite order both many-electron interactions using the random-phase approximation and higher-order intensity terms. We introduce an effective intensity, which takes into account the screening of the

We apply multichannel-quantum-defect theory (MQDT) to multiphoton ionization of rare gases in lowest-order perturbation theory. We determine MQDT parameters of J=1,3 odd-parity states, J=0,2 even-parity states in xenon and krypton by fitting experimental energy levels and constructing Lu-Fano plots. We present calculations of two- and three-photon ionization of xenon and krypton in the autoionizat

The production of molecular and atomic ions has been measured for CO, N2 and O2 with 1064 and 532 nm 40 ps pulses in the 1012-1014 W cm-2 intensity range. A simultaneous ionization-dissociation process occurs at lower intensities, while a sequential process appears in oxygen at higher intensities.

We present experimental measurements of harmonic generation in xenon using a 1064-nm 40-psec Nd-doped yttrium aluminum garnet laser. The harmonic yield is studied as a function of the position of the laser focus in the atomic beam. It shows regular oscillations whose period decreases with increasing harmonic order and which can be interpreted as phase-matching effects due to the tight focusing geo

We present a completely ab initio calculation of harmonic generation in xenon exposed to a strong laser field. The time-dependent Schrödinger equation for the atomic response and the propagation equation are numerically integrated yielding excellent agreement with experiment. The weaker variation with pump intensity of the induced dipole in the high-field regime leads to an enormous enhancement in

We present an approach to describe the phase matching of high harmonics emitted by laser driven atoms in a nonperturbative regime, for which the atomic response displays an intrinsic intensity-dependent phase. We show that the traditional phase-matching conditions involving conservation of wave vectors should be modified by taking into account the gradient of this atomic phase. We investigate vari

Singly, doubly, triply, and quadruply charged krypton ions are formed by multiphoton absorption processes in krypton atoms. They are induced by a 50-psec laser pulse at 1.064 m in the 1013-1014-W-cm-2 intensity range. The percentage ratio between the numbers of doubly and singly ionized Kr atoms is 10% at 8×1013 W cm-2. It is shown that Kr2+ ions result from a direct 33-photon absorption process.

Multiply charged ions are easily formed in rare gases by multiphoton absorption processes. For Kr and Xe up to quadruply charged ions are formed. They are induced by a bandwidth-limited 50 ps laser pulse at 1.064 W cm -2 intensity range. Doubly charged ions are formed through the absorption of a very large number of photons (29 for Xe) in a direct transition from the ground state of the atom to th

We present a theoretical interpretation of the experimental results on three-photon-resonant four-photon ionization of Kr reported by Landen, Perry, and Campbell [Phys. Rev. Lett. 59, 2558 (1987)] and Perry and Landen [Phys. Rev. A 38, 2815 (1988)]. Our calculations are based on multichannel quantum-defect theory combined with a density-matrix formalism describing the spatiotemporal development of