Eiji J. Takahashi

High-throughput, high-damage-threshold broadband beam splitter for high-order harmonics in the extreme-ultraviolet region.

We demonstrated a high-throughput and high-damage-threshold beam splitter for high-order harmonics using Si, SiC and Mo plates, set at Brewsters angle with respect to the pump wavelength

Generation of strong optical field in soft X-ray region by using high-order harmonics

For further development of a variety of applications, one of the most important issues is the improvement of output harmonic energy and conversion efficiency. We review our work on the energy scaling of high-order harmonic generation based on phase-matching using a loosely focused beam. Our harmonic energy scaling method can be universally applied to harmonic generation in the neutral rare gas target. In addition, we demonstrate a new concept for spatial separation between the high-energy pump and harmonic beam to increase the available soft X-ray energy for the applications. This method is very simple and highly useful for not only high-order harmonic generation but also longitudinally pumped X-ray lasers. By combining the high-energy high harmonic source and new spatial separation method, we successfully demonstrate focusing of the soft X-ray beam with a peak intensity of 1/spl times/10/sup 14/ W/cm/sup 2/, which is to our knowledge the highest ever reported in the soft X-ray region.

Acetylene-vinylidene isomerization in ultrashort intense laser fields studied by triple ion-coincidence momentum imaging

The isomerization of acetylene via hydrogen migration in intense laser fields (8 x 10(14) W/cm2) has been investigated by coincidence momentum imaging of the three-body Coulomb explosion process, C2H2 (3+)-->H+ + C+ + CH+. When ultrashort (9 fs) laser pulses are used, the angle between the momenta of C+ and H+ fragments exhibits a sharp distribution peaked at a small angle ( approximately 20 degrees ), showing that the hydrogen atom remains near the original carbon site in the acetylene configuration. On the other hand, a significantly broad distribution extending to larger momentum angles ( approximately 120 degrees ) is observed when the pulse duration is increased to 35 fs, indicating that the ultrafast isomerization to vinylidene is induced in the longer laser pulse.

Visualizing hydrogen atoms migrating in acetylene dication by time-resolved three-body and four-body Coulomb explosion imaging

The visualization of ultrafast isomerization of deuterated acetylene dication (C(2)D(2)(2+)) is demonstrated by time-resolved Coulomb explosion imaging with sub-10 fs intense laser pulses (9 fs, 0.13 PW cm(-2), 800 nm). The Coulomb explosion imaging monitoring the three-body explosion process, C(2)D(2)(3+)→ D(+) + C(+) + CD(+), as a function of the delay between the pump and probe pulses revealed that the migration of a deuterium atom proceeds in a recurrent manner; One of the deuterium atoms first shifts from one carbon site to the other in a short timescale (∼90 fs), and then migrates back to the original carbon site by 280 fs, in competition with the molecular dissociation. Correlated motion of the two deuterium atoms associated with the hydrogen migration and structural deformation to non-planar geometry are identified by the time-resolved four-body Coulomb explosion imaging, C(2)D(2)(4+)→ D(+) + C(+) + C(+) + D(+).

Dalitz plot analysis of Coulomb exploding O3 in ultrashort intense laser fields

The three-body Coulomb explosion of O3, O3(3+)-->O++O++O+, in ultrashort intense laser fields (2x10(15) W/cm2) is studied with two different pulse durations (9 and 40 fs) by the coincidence momentum imaging method. In addition to a decrease in the total kinetic energy release, a broadening in the Dalitz plot distribution [Philos. Mag. 44, 1068 (1953)] is observed when the pulse duration is increased from 9 to 40 fs. The analysis based on a simple Coulomb explosion model shows that the geometrical structure of O3 remains almost unchanged during the interaction with the few-cycle intense laser fields, while a significant structural deformation along all the three vibrational coordinates, including the antisymmetric stretching coordinate, is identified in the 40 fs intense laser fields. The observed nuclear dynamics are discussed in terms of the population transfer to the excited states of O3.

Time-resolved reaction imaging by intense few-cycle laser pulses and laser high-order harmonics

We discuss two novel approaches to visualize ultrafast dynamics of polyatomic molecules using few-cycle intense laser pulses and the high-order harmonics in the soft X-ray region, respectively. First, we present the real-time Coulomb explosion imaging of ultrafast isomerization of C2D22+ by using intense few-cycle laser pulses (<10 fs, ~1 PW/cm2, ~800 nm) to show that the hydrogen migration proceeds recurrently in competition with the molecular dissociation. Secondly, we present a new experimental setup for the real-time inner-core excitation imaging, focusing on the generation and separation of the light source using the 59th order harmonic pulses (~91 eV) and their characteristics.

Visualizing recurrently migrating hydrogen by few-cycle intense laser pulses

Ultrafast hydrogen migration in deuterated acetylene dication (C2D22+) is studied by the pump-probe Coulomb explosion imaging with few-cycle intense laser pulses (9 fs, 0.13 PW/cm2, 800 nm). The temporal evolution of the momenta of the fragment ions produced by the three-body explosion, C2D23+ → D++ C+ + CD+, shows that the migration proceeds in a recurrent manner: The deuterium atom first shifts from one carbon site to the other in a short time scale (~90 fs), and then migrates back to the original carbon site by 280 fs, in competition with the molecular dissociation.