Attosecond streaking of sub-cycle electron wave packets for probing rescattering dynamics in an intense laser field

Abstract

An electron tunneled out in an intense laser field can be driven back and rescattered by the parent ion, leading to rich physical phenomena. Recently, it has been shown that the streaking measurement of the rescattered electron is capable of the in situ characterization of the laser field. Here, we demonstrate that the streaking of the rescattered electron is also useful for investigating the ultrafast electron rescattering dynamics, including the rescattering time. We show that the rescattering times in Ar and Xe can be resolved with an accuracy of a few attoseconds. This accurate measurement of the rescattering time of tunnel-ionized electrons will provide deeper insights into ultrafast electron dynamics, such as tunneling and rescattering in an intense laser field.