Transient evolution of quasifree electrons of plasma in liquid water revealed by optical-pump terahertz-probe spectroscopy

The fundamental properties of laser-induced plasma in liquid water, such as the ultrafast electron migration and solvation, have not yet been clarified. We use 1650-nm femtosecond laser pulses to induce the plasma in a stable free-flowing water film under the strong field ionization mechanism. Moreover, we adopt intense terahertz (THz) pulses to probe the ultrafast temporal evolution of quasifree electrons of the laserinduced plasma in water on the subpicosecond scale. For the first time, the THz wave absorption signal with a unique two-step decay characteristic in time domain is demonstrated, indicating the significance of electron solvation in water. We employ the Drude model combined with the multilevel intermediate model and particlein-a-box model to simulate and analyze the key information of quasifree electrons, such as the frequencydomain absorption characteristics and solvation ratio. In particular, we observe that the solvation capacity of liquid water decreases with the increase of pumping energy. Up to similar to 50% of quasifree electrons cannot be captured by traps associated with the bound states as the pumping energy increases to 90 mu J/pulse. The ultrafast electron evolution in liquid water revealed by the optical-pump/THz-probe experiment provides further insights into the formation and evolution mechanisms of liquid plasma.

Automated summary

This study investigates the fundamental properties of laser-induced plasma in liquid water, revealing the ultrafast electron migration and solvation, emphasizing the significance of solvation in water plasma. The research shows that the solvation capacity of liquid water decreases with increasing pumping energy, leading to a portion of quasi-free electrons being unable to be captured.