Enhanced cutoff energies for direct and rescattered strong-field photoelectron emission of plasmonic nanoparticles
Author:
Saydanzad Erfan1ORCID, Powell Jeffrey123, Summers Adam134, Robatjazi Seyyed Javad1, Trallero-Herrero Carlos3ORCID, Kling Matthias F.45, Rudenko Artem1, Thumm Uwe1ORCID
Affiliation:
1. J. R. Macdonald Laboratory, Department of Physics , Kansas State University , Manhattan , 66506 , Kansas , USA 2. INRS, Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunication , Varennes, J3X 1P7 , Québec , Canada 3. Department of Physics , University of Connecticut , Storrs , 06269 , CT , USA 4. SLAC, National Accelerator Laboratory , Menlo Park , 94025 , CA , USA 5. Department of Applied Physics , Stanford University , Stanford , 94305 , CA , USA
Abstract
Abstract
The efficient generation, accurate detection, and detailed physical tracking of energetic electrons are of applied interest for high harmonics generation, electron-impact spectroscopy, and femtosecond time-resolved scanning tunneling microscopy. We here investigate the generation of photoelectrons (PEs) by exposing plasmonic nanostructures to intense laser pulses in the infrared (IR) spectral regime and analyze the sensitivity of PE spectra to competing elementary interactions for direct and rescattered photoemission pathways. Specifically, we measured and numerically simulated emitted PE momentum distributions from prototypical spherical gold nanoparticles (NPs) with diameters between 5 and 70 nm generated by short laser pulses with peak intensities of 8.0 × 1012 and 1.2 × 1013 W/cm2, demonstrating the shaping of PE spectra by the Coulomb repulsion between PEs, accumulating residual charges on the NP, and induced plasmonic electric fields. Compared to well-understood rescattering PE cutoff energies for strong-field photoemission from gaseous atomic targets (10× the ponderomotive energy), our measured and simulated PE spectra reveal a dramatic cutoff-energy increase of two orders of magnitude with a significantly higher contribution from direct photoemission. Our findings indicate that direct PEs reach up to 93 % of the rescattered electron cutoff energy, in contrast to 20 % for gaseous atoms, suggesting a novel scheme for the development of compact tunable tabletop electron sources.
Funder
Air Force Office of Scientific Research U.S. Department of Energy US NSF Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Office of Science, U.S. DOE
Publisher
Walter de Gruyter GmbH
Subject
Electrical and Electronic Engineering,Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics,Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials,Biotechnology
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