title: Observation of correlated electronic decay in expanding clusters triggered by near-infrared fields.
abstract: When an excited atom is embedded into an environment, novel relaxation pathways can emerge that are absent for isolated atoms. A well-known example is interatomic Coulombic decay, where an excited atom relaxes by transferring its excess energy to another atom in the environment, leading to its ionization. Such processes have been observed in clusters ionized by extreme-ultraviolet and X-ray lasers. Here, we report on a correlated electronic decay process that occurs following nanoplasma formation and Rydberg atom generation in the ionization of clusters by intense, non-resonant infrared laser fields. Relaxation of the Rydberg states and transfer of the available electronic energy to adjacent electrons in Rydberg states or quasifree electrons in the expanding nanoplasma leaves a distinct signature in the electron kinetic energy spectrum. These so far unobserved electron-correlation-driven energy transfer processes may play a significant role in the response of any nano-scale system to intense laser light.
authors.affiliation: Max-Born-Institut, Max-Born-Straße. 2A, 12489 Berlin, Germany.|Department of Physics, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schütte
authors.affiliation: Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, Albert-Einstein-Straße. 23, 18059 Rostock, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Arbeiter
authors.affiliation: Institut für Physik, Universität Rostock, Albert-Einstein-Straße. 23, 18059 Rostock, Germany.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fennel
authors.affiliation: Theoretische Chemie, PCI, Universität Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 229, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Jabbari
authors.affiliation: Theoretische Chemie, PCI, Universität Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 229, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: A I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Kuleff
authors.affiliation: Max-Born-Institut, Max-Born-Straße. 2A, 12489 Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: M J J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Vrakking
authors.affiliation: Max-Born-Institut, Max-Born-Straße. 2A, 12489 Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rouzée