Atomic Spectroscopy with Twisted Photons: Separation of M1--E2 Mixed Multipoles

Abstract

We analyze atomic photoexcitation into the discrete states by twisted photons, or photons carrying extra orbital angular momentum along their direction of propagation. From the angular momentum and parity considerations, we are able to relate twisted-photon photoexcitation amplitudes to their plane-wave analogues, independently of the details of the atomic wave functions. We analyzed the photo-absorption cross sections of mixed-multipolarity $E2-M1$ transitions in ionized atoms and found fundamental differences coming from the photon topology. Our theoretical analysis demonstrates that it is possible to extract the relative transition rates of different multipolar contributions by measuring the photo-excitation rate as a function of the atom's position (or the impact parameter) with respect to the optical vortex center. The proposed technique for separation of multipoles can be implemented if the target's atom position is resolved with sub-wavelength accuracy, for example, with Paul traps. Numerical examples are presented for Boron-like highly-charged ions (HCI).

7 pages, 3 figures

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Cited by in corpus (13)

• Excitation of E1-forbidden Atomic Transitions with Electric, Magnetic or Mixed Multipolarity in Light Fields Carrying Orbital and Spin Angular Momentum
• Dynamical control of nuclear isomer depletion via electron vortex beams
• Elastic scattering of twisted neutrons by nuclei
• Modification of multipole transitions by twisted light
• Recoil Momentum Effects in Quantum Processes Induced by Twisted Photons
• Resonant scattering of plane-wave and twisted photons at the Gamma Factory
• Delta baryon photoproduction with twisted photons
• Resonant sequential two-photon ionization of atoms by twisted and plane-wave light
• Electrons in intense laser fields with local phase, polarization, and skyrmionic textures
• Polarization Transfer from the Twisted Light to an Atom
• Photoexcitation of atoms by cylindrically polarized Laguerre-Gaussian beams
• Spin Polarization of Photoelectrons in GaAs Excited by Twisted Photons
• Orbital angular momentum beam generation using a free-electron laser oscillator