Strong-field photoelectron holography in the subcycle limit

Abstract

Strong-field photoelectron holography (SFPH) is promising for the study of electron dynamics and structure in atoms and molecules, with superior spatiotemporal resolution compared to conventional electron and X-ray diffractometry. However, the application of SFPH has been hindered by intercycle interference from multicycle fields. Here, we address this challenge by employing a near-single-cycle field to suppress the intercycle interference. We observed and separated two distinct holographic patterns for the first time. Our measurements allow us not only to identify the Gouy phase effect on electron wavepackets and holographic patterns but also to correctly extract the internuclear separation of the target molecule from the holographic pattern. Our work leads to a leap jump from theory to application in the field of SFPH-based ultrafast imaging of molecular structure.