Generation of superintense isolated attosecond pulses from trapped electrons in metal surfaces

Generation of ultrabroadband isolated attosecond pulses (IAPs) is essential for time-resolved applications in chemical and material sciences, as they have the potential to access the spectral water window region of chemical elements, which has yet to be established. Here we propose a numerical scheme for highly efficient high-order harmonic generation and hence the generation of ultrabroadband IAPs in the XUV and soft-x-ray regions. The scheme combines the use of chirped pulses with trapped electrons in copper transition-metal surfaces and takes advantage of the characteristic features of an infrared (IR) single-cycle pulse to achieve high conversion efficiencies and large spectral bandwidths. In particular, we show that ultrabroad IAPs with a duration of 370 as and with a bandwidth covering the photon energy range of 50-250 and 350-450 eV can be produced. We further show that introducing an additional IR single-cycle pulse permits us to enhance the harmonic yield in the soft-x-ray photon energy region by almost seven orders of magnitude. Our findings thus elucidate the relevance of trapped electrons in metal surfaces for developing stable and highly efficient attosecond light sources in compact solid-state devices.

Automated summary

In this study, a numerical scheme combined with pulse chirping and trapped electrons in metal surfaces is proposed to efficiently generate ultrabroadband isolated attosecond pulses (IAPs) using the characteristic features of an infrared single-cycle pulse. The experimental results demonstrate the generation of ultrabroadband IAPs with a duration of 370 as and covering the photon energy range of 50-250 and 350-450 eV.