Rydberg Atoms in Strong Static Fields

Abstract

magneticfieldatoms inelectric fieldatoms in Confronting classical and quantum mechanics in systems whose classical motion is chaotic is one of the fundamental problems of physics, as evidenced by the enormous outpouring of research during the last three decades [15.1,2]. Highly excited Rydberg atoms in external fields [15.3] play a prominent role in this quest because they are the best known examples of quantum systems whose classical counterpart is chaotic. For a wide variety of field configurations and field strengths, their spectra can be measured to high precision. At the same time, since their Hamiltonians are known analytically, they are equally amenable to accurate theoretical investigations using either classical or quantum mechanics. This chapter is restricted to a description of Rydberg atoms in strong static fields. Related information on atoms in strong fields can be found in Chapt. 13 of this Handbook, on Rydberg atoms in Chapt. 14, and on the interaction of atoms with strong laser fields in Chapt. 74.