Unexpected breakdown of the simple man's model for strong-field photoionization in the high-energy recollision region.

We present experimental and theoretical evidence on the breakdown of the simple man's model in the high-energy recollision region by examining both the energy-resolved angular distribution of photoelectrons in above-threshold ionization and the spectrum of high-order harmonics generated in elliptically polarized driver fields. With the help of a semiclassical model calculation, we show that, surprisingly, even for the high-energy recollision electrons, their wave-packet dynamics can be influenced strongly by the Coulomb field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]