A comprehensive theoretical study of direct laser excitation of a nuclear state based on the density matrix formalism is presented. The nuclear clock isomer $^{229\text{m}}$Th is discussed in detail, as it could allow for direct laser excitation using existing technology and provides the motivation for this work. The optical Bloch equations are derived for the simplest case of a pure nuclear two-level system and for the more complex cases taking into account the presence of magnetic sub-states, hyperfine-structure and Zeeman splitting in external fields. Nuclear level splitting for free atoms and ions as well as for nuclei in a solid-state environment is discussed individually. Based on the obtained equations, nuclear population transfer in the low-saturation limit is reviewed. Further, nuclear Rabi oscillations, power broadening and nuclear two-photon excitation are considered. Finally, the theory is applied to the special cases of $^{229\text{m}}$Th and $^{235\text{m}}$U, being the nuclear excited states of lowest known excitation energies. The paper aims to be a didactic review with many calculations given explicitly.
Nuclear collective processes study with attosecond laser pulses
本文研究了用阿秒激光脉冲激发集体核运动的可能性。根据我们早期的结果（Lasers in Engineering 11（2001）p.259），我们用公式表示并求解了核物质的双曲线热输运。结果表明，在30 MeV的激发能附近，量子化电子能激发核内的巨集体运动-热波。关键词：阿秒激光脉冲;电子反应;热波;巨共振。
The S-matrix element and the cross section of the laser-assisted nuclear photoeffect are recalculated in a gauge invariant manner taking into account the effect of the Coulomb field of the remainder nucleus. The γ-photon energy dependence of the laser free cross section obtained in the plane wave and long-wavelength Coulomb-Volkov approximations are compared. Numerically the laser-assisted partial cross sections with laser photon energy 2 keV and some different polarization states of γ-photon of energy 3 MeV are investigated.
The change of the probability of proton emission in nuclear photoeffect due to an intense coherent (laser) field is discussed near the threshold, where the hindering effect of the Coulomb field of the remainder nucleus is essential. The ratio of laser-assisted and laser free differential cross section is deduced and found to be independent of the polarization state of the $γ$ field and the two types of initial nuclear state considered. The numerical values of this ratio are given at some characteristic parameters of the intense field.
Rapid-advancing intense laser technologies enable the possibility of a direct laser-nucleus coupling. In this paper the effect of intense laser fields on a series of nuclear fission processes, including proton decay, alpha decay, and cluster decay, is theoretically studied with the help of nuclear double folding potentials. The results show that the half-lives of these decay processes can be modified by non-negligible amounts, for example on the order of 0.01 or 0.1 percents in intense laser fields available in the forthcoming years. In addition to numerical results, an approximate analytical …
A zeptosecond multi--MeV laser pulse may either excite a "plasma" of strongly interacting nucleons or a collective mode. We derive the conditions on laser energy and photon number such that either of these scenarios is realized. We use the nuclear Giant Dipole Resonance as a representative example, and a random--matrix description of the fine--structure states and perturbation theory as tools.
An alternative method to determine the excitation energy of the $~^{229\rm{m}}\rm{Th}$ isomer via the laser-induced electronic bridge is investigated theoretically. In the presence of an optical or ultra-violet laser at energies that fulfill a two-photon resonance condition, the excited nuclear state can decay by transfering its energy to the electronic shell. A bound electron is then promoted to an excited state by absorption of a laser photon and simultaneous de-excitation of the nucleus. We present calculated rates for the laser-induced electronic bridge process and discuss the experimental…
Laser-induced nuclear recollisions following $α$ decay in the presence of an intense laser field are investigated theoretically. We show that while an intense optical laser does not influence notably the tunneling rate in $α$ decay, it can completely change the $α$ particle spectrum. For intensities of $10^{22}-10^{23}$ W/cm$^{2}$, the field is strong enough to induce recollisions between the emitted $α$ particle and the daughter nucleus. The energy gained by the $α$ particle in the field can reach 20 MeV and suffice to trigger several types of nuclear reactions on a femtosecond time scale. Si…
Using the Brink-Axel hypothesis we derive the rate $R$ for nuclear dipole excitation by a laser pulse carrying $N \gg 1$ photons with average energy $\hbar ω_0 \approx 5$ MeV. As expected $R \propto (\hbar ω_0)^3$. The rate is also proportional to the aperure $α$ of the laser pulse. Perhaps less expected is the fact that $R \propto N$, irrespective of the degree of coherence of the laser pulse. The expression for $R$, derived for a nearly stationary laser pulse, is valid also for short times and can, thus, be used in simulations via rate equations of multiple nuclear dipole excitations by a si…
Proton emission from nuclei via the nuclear photoeffect in the combined electromagnetic fields of a gamma-ray photon and an intense laser wave is studied. An S-matrix approach to the process is developed by utilizing methods known from the theory of nonperturbative laser-atom interactions. As a specific example, photo-proton ejection from halo nuclei is considered. We show that, due to the presence of the laser field, rich sideband structures arise in the photo-proton energy spectra. Their dependence on the parameters and relative orientation of the photon fields is discussed.
The process of nuclear excitation by electron capture in plasma environments generated by the interaction of ultra-strong optical lasers with solid-state samples is investigated theoretically. With the help of a plasma model we perform a comprehensive study of the optimal parameters for most efficient nuclear excitation and determine the corresponding laser setup requirements. We discern between the low-density plasma regime, modeled by scaling laws, and the high-density regime, for which we perform particle-in-cell calculations. As nuclear transition case study we consider the 4.85 keV nuclea…
The optimal parameters for nuclear excitation by electron capture in plasma environments generated by the interaction of ultra-strong optical lasers with solid matter are investigated theoretically. As a case study we consider a 4.85 keV nuclear transition starting from the long-lived $^{93\mathrm{m}}$Mo isomer that can lead to the release of the stored 2.4 MeV excitation energy. We find that due to the complex plasma dynamics, the nuclear excitation rate and the actual number of excited nuclei do not reach their maximum at the same laser parameters. The nuclear excitation achievable with a hi…
Nuclear excitation cross section of $^{229}$Th from the ground state to the low-lying isomeric state via inelastic electron scattering is calculated, on the level of Dirac distorted wave Born approximation. With electron energies below 100 eV, inelastic scattering is very efficient in the isomeric excitation, yielding excitation cross sections on the order of 10$^{-27}$ to 10$^{-26}$ cm$^2$. Systematic analyses are presented on elements affecting the excitation cross section, including the ion-core potential, the relativistic effect, the knowledge of the reduced nuclear transition probabilitie…
The nuclear collective excitations are studied within Landau Fermi liquid theory. By using the nucleon-nucleon interaction of the linear sigma-omega model, the nuclear collective excitation energies of different values of $l$ are obtained, which are fitted with the centroid energies of the giant resonances of spherical nuclei, respectively. In addition, it is pointed out that the isovector giant resonances except l=1 correspond to the modes that protons are in the creation state and neutrons are in the annihilation state, and vice versa. Some mixtures of the nuclear collective excitation state…
The new regime of resonant nuclear photoexcitation rendered possible by x-ray free electron laser beams interacting with solid state targets is investigated theoretically. Our results unexpectedly show that secondary processes coupling nuclei to the atomic shell in the created cold high-density plasma can dominate direct photoexcitation. As an example we discuss the case of $^{93m}$Mo isomer depletion for which nuclear excitation by electron capture as secondary process is shown to be orders of magnitude more efficient than the direct laser-nucleus interaction. General arguments revisiting the…
The collective excitation of nuclear matter is analyzed in a bosonized Landau Fermi liquid model. When the nonlinear self-interacting terms of scalar mesons are included in Walecka model, the collective excitation energy of nuclear matter can be obtained self-consistently, and the calculation results are consistent with the corresponding experimental data of the nucleus ${}^{208}Pb$ when the quantum number of the orientation of the total spin $m$ is zero. The cases with the nonzero $m$ values are also studied, and it is found that the collective excitation energy of nuclear matter decreases wi…
We discuss scaling laws of fusion yields generated by laser-plasma interactions. The yields are found to scale as a function of the laser power. The origin of the scaling law in the laser driven fusion yield is derived in terms of hydrodynamic scaling. We point out that the scaling properties can be attributed to the laser power dependence of three terms: the reaction rate, the density of the plasma and the projected range of the plasma particle in the target medium. The resulting scaling relations have a predictive power that enables estimating the fusion yield for a nuclear reaction which ha…
X-ray assisted nuclear excitation by electron capture (NEEC) into inner-shell atomic holes in a plasma environment generated by strong optical lasers is investigated theoretically. The considered scenario involves the interaction of a strong optical laser with a solid-state nuclear target leading to the generation of a plasma. In addition, intense x-ray radiation from an X-ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL) produces inner-shell holes in the plasma ions, into which NEEC may occur. As case study we consider the $4.85$-keV transition starting from the 2.4 MeV long-lived $^{\mathrm{93m}}$Mo isomer tha…
A possibility of amplification of the 7.6 eV $γ$-radiation by the stimulated $γ$-emission of the ensemble of the $^{229m}$Th isomeric nuclei in a host dielectric crystal is proved theoretically. This amplification is a result of: 1) the excitation of a large number of the $^{229m}$Th isomers by laser radiation; 2) the creation of the inverse population of nuclear levels in a cooled sample owing to the interaction of thorium nuclei with the crystal electric field or with an external magnetic field; 3) the emissions/absorption of the optical photons by thorium nuclei in the crystal without recoi…
The direct and secondary nuclear excitation produced by an x-ray free electron laser when interacting with a solid-state nuclear target is investigated theoretically. When driven at the resonance energy, the x-ray free electron laser can produce direct photoexcitation. However, the dominant process in that interaction is the photoelectric effect producing a cold and very dense plasma in which also secondary processes such as nuclear excitation by electron capture may occur. We develop a realistic theoretical model to quantify the temporal dynamics of the plasma and the magnitude of the seconda…
A new mechanism of nuclear excitation via two-photon electron transitions (NETP) is proposed and studied theoretically. As a generic example, detailed calculations are performed for the $E1E1$ $1s2s\,^1S_0 \rightarrow 1s^2\,^1S_0$ two-photon decay of He-like $^{225}$Ac$^{87+}$ ion with the resonant excitation of the $3/2+$ nuclear state with the energy 40.09(5) keV. The probability for such a two-photon decay via the nuclear excitation is found to be $P_{\rm NETP} = 3.5 \times 10^{-9}$ and, thus, is comparable with other mechanisms, such as nuclear excitation by electron transition and by elec…
Previously we proposed a new approach of exciting the $^{229}$Th nucleus using laser-driven electron recollision [W. Wang et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 052501 (2021)]. The current article is aimed to elaborate the method by explaining further theoretical details and presenting extended new results. The method has also been improved by adopting the electronic excitation cross sections calculated recently by Tkalya [E. V. Tkalya, Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 242501 (2020)]. The new cross sections are obtained from Dirac distorted-wave calculations instead of from Dirac plane-wave calculations as we use…
We consider the excitation of the nuclear transition ^{229g}Th - ^{229m}Th near 7.6 eV in singly ionized thorium via an electronic bridge process. The process relies on the excitation of the electron shell by two laser photons whose sum frequency is equal to the nuclear transition frequency. This scheme allows to determine the nuclear transition frequency with high accuracy. Based on calculations of the electronic level structure of Th^+ which combine the configuration-interaction method and many-body perturbation theory, we estimate that a nuclear excitation rate in the range of 10 s^{-1} can…
The recent progress in the studies of nuclear charge-exchange excitations with localized covariant density functional theory is briefly presented, by taking the fine structure of spin-dipole excitations in 16O as an example. It is shown that the constraints introduced by the Fock terms of the relativistic Hartree-Fock scheme into the particle-hole residual interactions are straightforward and robust.
We study the impact of neutrino-pair production from the de-excitation of highly excited heavy nuclei on core-collapse supernova simulations, following the evolution up to several 100 ms after core bounce. Our study is based on the AGILE-Boltztran supernova code, which features general relativistic radiation hydrodynamics and accurate three-flavor Boltzmann neutrino transport in spherical symmetry. In our simulations the nuclear de-excitation process is described in two different ways. At first we follow the approach proposed by Fuller and Meyer [Astrophys. J. 376,701 (1991)], which is based o…
Parameterizations of Electron Scattering Form Factors for Elastic Scattering and Electro-Excitation of Nuclear States for $\rm ^{27}Al$ and $\rm ^{40}Ca$
The neutron-rich 6He and 8He isotopes exhibit an exotic nuclear structure that consists of a tightly bound 4He-like core with additional neutrons orbiting at a relatively large distance, forming a halo. Recent experimental efforts have succeeded in laser trapping and cooling these short-lived, rare helium atoms, and have measured the atomic isotope shifts along the 4He-6He-8He chain by performing laser spectroscopy on individual trapped atoms. Meanwhile, the few-electron atomic structure theory, including relativistic and QED corrections, has reached a comparable degree of accuracy in the calc…
