Rainbow RABBITT as a Probe of Coherent Rabi Dynamics

Abstract

Attosecond pulse trains interacting with a resonantly dressed atom generate a pronounced intra-sideband phase structure that remains hidden in conventional spectrally integrated RABBITT measurements. Using \textit{ab initio} time-dependent Schr\"odinger equation calculations for lithium near the resonant $2s\to2p$ transition, we show that the phase extracted within a single sideband can vary by nearly $\pi$ across its spectral width. The resulting intra-sideband phase dispersion exhibits a characteristic dependence on the IR detuning, pulse duration, intensity, and sideband order. Most strikingly, exact resonant Rabi flopping flattens the intra-sideband phase dispersion, whereas a small detuning generates a pronounced phase modulation despite weaker population transfer. This counterintuitive behavior demonstrates that rainbow RABBITT probes the dynamical phase accumulated by a Rabi-dressed wave packet rather than the instantaneous populations of the participating states. A simple analytical model captures the principal features of the numerical calculations and provides physical insight into the emergence of the intra-sideband phase structure. These results establish intra-sideband phase dispersion as a new interferometric observable for mapping coherent Rabi dynamics.