Attosecond time-resolved photoemission from core and valence states of magnesium

Phys Rev Lett. 2012 Aug 24;109(8):087401. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.109.087401. Epub 2012 Aug 22.

Abstract

We report on laser-assisted attosecond photoemission from single-crystalline magnesium. In strong contrast to the previously investigated transition metal tungsten, photoelectron wave packets originating from the localized core level and delocalized valence-band states are launched simultaneously from the solid within the experimental uncertainty of 20 as. This phenomenon is shown to be compatible with a heuristic model based on free-particle-like propagation of the electron wave packets generated inside the crystal by the attosecond excitation pulse and their subsequent interaction with the assisting laser field at the metal-vacuum interface.