Macroscopic control of high-order harmonics quantum-path components for the generation of attosecond pulses

Abstract

We present measurements of the different quantum path contributions to the high-order harmonic emission. Through spatial and spectral filtering, we evidence the strong correlation between the spatial and spectral distributions, which allows us to quantify the contribution of each quantum path. A systematic analysis as a function of the generating parameters has been done to identify the conditions for efficient generation and selection of a single quantum path. We show that combining phase matching and spatial filtering allows maximizing and selecting the short quantum path contribution, condition for the generation of a and intense attosecond pulses. © 2006 The American Physical Society.