Markus Kitzler et al 2008 New J. Phys. 10 025029 doi:10.1088/1367-2630/10/2/025029
Markus Kitzler1, Xinhua Xie, Stefan Roither, Armin Scrinzi and Andrius Baltuska
Show affiliationsPart of Focus on Attosecond Physics
We describe a general concept of using the spatial information encoded in the time-dependent polarization of high harmonic radiation generated by orthogonally polarized two-color laser fields. The main properties of recolliding electron wave packets driven by such fields are reviewed. It is shown that in addition to the recollision energy the angle of recollision of such wave packets, which is directly mapped onto the polarization direction of the emitted high harmonic radiation, varies on a sub-laser-cycle time-scale. Thus, a mapping between the polarization angle and the frequency of the emitted radiation is established on an attosecond time scale. While the polarization angle encodes the spatial properties of the recollision process, the frequency is linked to time via the well-known dispersion relations of high harmonic generation. Based on these principles, we show that in combination with polarization selective detection the use of orthogonally polarized drive pulses for high harmonic generation permit one to construct spatially resolved attosecond measurements. Here, we present two examples of possible applications: (i) a method for isolating a single attosecond pulse from an attosecond pulse train which is more efficient than the cut-off selection method, and (ii) a technique for orbital tomography of molecules with attosecond resolution.
Issue 2 (February 2008)
Received 20 September 2007
Published 29 February 2008
Markus Kitzler et al 2008 New J. Phys. 10 025029
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