SearcharxivSearch

arXiv subjects

J F McCann

Publications and source records attributed to J F McCann.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

Radiative charge transfer in cold and ultracold Sulfur atoms colliding with Protons

Radiative decay processes at cold and ultra cold temperatures for Sulfur atoms colliding with protons are investigated. The MOLPRO quantum chemistry suite of codes was used to obtain accurate potential energies and transition dipole moments, as a function of internuclear distance, between low-lying states of the SH$^{+}$ molecular cation. A multi-reference configuration-interaction (MRCI) approximation together with the Davidson correction is used to determine the potential energy curves and transition dipole moments, between the states of interest, where the molecular orbitals (MO's) are obtained from state-averaged multi configuration-self-consistent field (MCSCF) calculations. The collision problem is solved approximately using an optical potential method to obtain radiative loss, and a fully two-channel quantum approach for radiative charge transfer. Cross sections and rate coefficients are determined for the first time for temperatures ranging from 10 $μ$ K up to 10,000 K. Results are obtained for all isotopes of Sulfur, colliding with H$^{+}$ and D$^{+}$ ions and comparison is made to a number of other collision systems.

physics.atom-ph

Doppler cooling of gallium atoms: 2. Simulation in complex multilevel systems

This paper derives a general procedure for the numerical solution of the Lindblad equations that govern the coherences arising from multicoloured light interacting with a multilevel system. A systematic approach to finding the conservative and dissipative terms is derived and applied to the laser cooling of gallium. An improved numerical method is developed to solve the time-dependent master equation and results are presented for transient cooling processes. The method is significantly more robust, efficient and accurate than the standard method and can be applied to a broad range of atomic and molecular systems. Radiation pressure forces and the formation of dynamic dark-states are studied in the gallium isotope 66Ga.

physics.atom-ph

Extreme UV generation from molecules in intense Ti:Sapphire light

We simulate the dynamics of H2+ and HD+ by direct solution of the time-dependent Schroedinger equation for the electronic and nuclear motion for the interaction of intense femtosecond pulses. On these timescales the rotational motion, even for such light molecules, is frozen. Therefore it is a reasonable assumption that the nuclear alignment is fixed during the pulse interaction and that rotation can be neglected. In terms of vibrational relaxation, and since the nuclei are light, vibration will be important over femtosecond timescales. Although homonuclear diatomics are IR-inactive, in an intense field one can create vibrational excitation through continuum coupling. To show the effect of vibration, consider a first approximation in which the nuclei are infinitely massive so they maintain their positions at a fixed bond length of R=2 a.u., throughout the process.

physics.atom-ph

Attosecond signatures in photodissociation by an intense Ti:Sapphire pulse

In our model the electron dynamics are described by a two-state approximation. This might appear a rough approximation since it neglects coupling through excited electronic states and ionization channels. However at high intensity (laser fields equivalent to the Coulomb force) and long wavelength (photon energy much lower than the ionization potential) the dissociation process occurs by adiabatic polarization involving the lowest electronic states. For the experiment in question, with intensities above 10x14 W cm-2 and photon energies of 1.5eV, such an approach is well justified. More contentious is the neglect of rotational heating (that is molecular realignment) during the pulse. However, this process is essentially an internal relaxation and for a 50fs pulse it has a small effect. To calculate the dissociation spectrum, we have applied discretization methods developed for photoionization of molecules4) to solve the quantum equations in a dual configuration and momentum space. Technical details are discussed in the paper by Peng et al.

physics.atom-ph

Dissociation spectrum of H$_2^+$ from a short, intense infrared laser pulse: vibration structure and focal volume effects

The dissociation spectrum of the hydrogen molecular ion by short intense pulses of infrared light is calculated. The time-dependent Schrödinger equation is discretized and integrated in position and momentum space. For few-cycle pulses one can resolve vibrational structure that commonly arises in the experimental preparation of the molecular ion from the neutral molecule. We calculate the corresponding energy spectrum and analyze the dependence on the pulse time-delay, pulse length, and intensity of the laser for $λ\sim 790$nm. We conclude that the proton spectrum is a both a sensitive probe of the vibrational dynamics and the laser pulse. Finally we compare our results with recent measurements of the proton spectrum for 55 fs pulses using a Ti:Sapphire laser ($λ\sim 790 $nm). Integrating over the laser focal volume, for the intensity $I \sim 3 \times 10^{15}$W cm$^{-2}$, we find our results are in excellent agreement with these experiments.

physics.atom-ph

A discrete time-dependent method for metastable atoms in intense fields

The full-dimensional time-dependent Schrodinger equation for the electronic dynamics of single-electron systems in intense external fields is solved directly using a discrete method. Our approach combines the finite-difference and Lagrange mesh methods. The method is applied to calculate the quasienergies and ionization probabilities of atomic and molecular systems in intense static and dynamic electric fields. The gauge invariance and accuracy of the method is established. Applications to multiphoton ionization of positronium and hydrogen atoms and molecules are presented. At very high intensity above saturation threshold, we extend the method using a scaling technique to estimate the quasienergies of metastable states of the hydrogen molecular ion. The results are in good agreement with recent experiments.

physics.atom-ph

Dynamic tunnelling ionization of $H_2^+$ in intense fields

Intense-field ionization of the hydrogen molecular ion by linearly-polarized light is modelled by direct solution of the fixed-nuclei time-dependent Schrödinger equation and compared with recent experiments. Parallel transitions are calculated using algorithms which exploit massively parallel computers. We identify and calculate dynamic tunnelling ionization resonances that depend on laser wavelength and intensity, and molecular bond length. Results for $λ\sim 1064$ nm are consistent with static tunnelling ionization. At shorter wavelengths $λ\sim 790 $ nm large dynamic corrections are observed. The results agree very well with recent experimental measurements of the ion spectra. Our results reproduce the single peak resonance and provide accurate ionization rate estimates at high intensities. At lower intensities our results confirm a double peak in the ionization rate as the bond length varies.

physics.comp-ph

Superfluid toroidal currents in atomic condensates

The dynamics of toroidal condensates in the presence of condensate flow and dipole perturbation have been investigated. The Bogoliubov spectrum of condensate is calculated for an oblate torus using a discrete-variable representation and a spectral method to high accuracy. The transition from spheroidal to toroidal geometry of the trap displaces the energy levels into narrow bands. The lowest-order acoustic modes are quantized with the dispersion relation $ω\sim |m| ω_s $ with $m=0,\pm 1,\pm 2, ...$. A condensate with toroidal current $κ$ splits the $|m|$ co-rotating and counter-rotating pair by the amount: $ΔE \approx 2 |m|\hbar^2 κ< r^{-2}>$. Radial dipole excitations are the lowest energy dissipation modes. For highly occupied condensates the nonlinearity creates an asymmetric mix of dipole circulation and nonlinear shifts in the spectrum of excitations so that the center of mass circulates around the axis of symmetry of the trap. We outline an experimental method to study these excitations.

cond-mat.stat-mech

Gyroscopic motion of superfluid trapped atomic condensates

The gyroscopic motion of a trapped Bose gas containing a vortex is studied. We model the system as a classical top, as a superposition of coherent hydrodynamic states, by solution of the Bogoliubov equations, and by integration of the time-dependent Gross-Pitaevskii equation. The frequency spectrum of Bogoliubov excitations, including quantum frequency shifts, is calculated and the quantal precession frequency is found to be consistent with experimental results, though a small discrepancy exists. The superfluid precession is found to be well described by the classical and hydrodynamic models. However the frequency shifts and helical oscillations associated with vortex bending and twisting require a quantal treatment. In gyroscopic precession, the vortex excitation modes $m=\pm 1$ are the dominant features giving a vortex kink or bend, while the $m=+2$ is found to be the dominant Kelvin wave associated with vortex twisting.

cond-mat.stat-mech

Wave mixing of hybrid Bogoliubov modes in a Bose-Einstein condensate

Mode-mixing of coherent excitations of a trapped Bose-Einstein condensate is modelled using the Bogoliubov approximation. Hybridization of the modes of the breather ($l=0$) and surface ($l=4$) states leads to the formation of a Bogoliubov dark state. Calculations are presented for second-harmonic generation between the two lowest-lying even-parity $m=0$ modes in an oblate spheroidal trap. Two hybrid modes are strongly excited near second-harmonic resonance, and the coupling strength, and hence conversion rate, to the breather mode is half that given by an equivalent hydrodynamic estimate.

cond-mat.stat-mech

The energy dependence of relativistic nonradiative electron capture

The energy dependence of the nonradiative electron capture cross-section is discussed in the relativistic domain. A simple analytic expression is obtained for inner-shell transitions using second-order perturbation theory. We have confirmed that the leading-order term is found to have the following energy dependence: Q ~ E^{-1}ln^2 E. This is attributed to a combination of kinematic features of the process and retardation effects. Electron capture without change of spin is the dominant transition.

atom-ph