Distribution of Rydberg atoms acceleration by a laser pulse.

Simulations of the movement of the excited neutral atoms were performed with random sampling and the ponderomotive model. The modeling parameters were setup according to the experiment of laser acceleration of neutral helium [Nature 431(7268), 1261 (2009)]. A comparison between the simulation results and the experiment measurements is made in detail, and the characteristics of the final distribution of the Rydberg neutral atoms are analyzed. Two important factors that determine the final distribution of Rydberg neutral atoms, namely, the ponderomotive force and the original distribution of the Rydberg atoms corresponding to the distribution of the laser intensity, are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]