title: Observation of coherent wave packets in a heavy Rydberg system.
abstract: Coherent dynamical behavior is observed in the heavy Rydberg system H+H-. Because of the large mass, time scales of the wave-packet evolution are orders of magnitude slower than for a Rydberg electron. In the presence of a weak electric field, wave packets made up of about 1000 Stark states are excited by near-Fourier transform limited nanosecond laser pulses. Pulsed-field dissociation reveals coherent time evolution on a microsecond time scale, observed as oscillations with frequencies explained by a linear Stark model applied to the H+H- system.
authors.affiliation: Laser Centre, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Vrije Universiteit, De Boelelaan 1081, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Reinhold
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ubachs