A quantum optical model for the dynamics of high harmonic generation

Abstract: We investigate a two-level atom in the field of a strong laser pulse. The resulting time-dependent polarization is the source of a radiation the frequency components of which are essentially harmonics of the driving field's carrier frequency. The time evolution of this secondary radiation is analyzed in terms of the expectation values of the photon number operators for a large number of electromagnetic modes that are initially in the vacuum state. Our method is based on a multimode version of the Jaynes-Cummings-Paul model and can be generalized to different radiating systems as well. We show, that after the exciting pulse, the final distribution of the photon numbers is close to the conventional (Fourier transform-based) power spectrum of the secondary radiation. The details of the high harmonic spectra are also analyzed, for many-cycle excitations a clear physical interpretation can be given in terms of the Floquet quasi-energies. A first step towards the determination of the photon statistics of the HHG modes reveals states with slightly super-Poissonian distribution.