This book collects the lectures given at the NATO Advanced Study Institute on "Atoms in Strong Fields", which took place on the island of Kos, Greece, during the two weeks of October 9-21,1988. The designation "strong field" applies here to an external electromagnetic field that is sufficiently strong to cause highly nonlinear alterations in atomic or molecular struc ture and dynamics. The specific topics treated in this volume fall into two general cater gories, which are those for which strong field effects can be studied in detail in terrestrial laboratories: the dynamics of excited states in static or quasi-static electric and magnetic fields; and the interaction of atoms and molecules with intense laser radiation. In both areas there exist promising opportunities for research of a fundamental nature. An electric field of even a few volts per centimeter can be very strong on the atom ic scale, if it acts upon a weakly bound state. The study of Rydberg states with high reso lution laser spectroscopic techniques has made it possible to follow the transition from weak-field to strong-field behavior in remarkable detail, using static fields of modest lab oratory strength; in the course of this transition the atomic system evolves from one which can be thoroughly understood in terms of field-free quantum numbers, to one which cannot be meaningfully associated at all with the zero-field states of the atom.

The monograph is devoted to phenomena of nonlinear optics appearing on a macro scopic level in the interaction of intense light with an isolated atom. It is a first attempt to summarize the elementary phenomena of nonlinear optics and present the various methods used in experiment and theory. In essence, this book can be considered an expanded version of the new aspect of quantum mechanics and atomic physics that in time will be incorporated into te- books on this subject. By the middle of this century the interaction of light with atoms had become one of the most investigated branches of physics. However, in the mid-sixties the development of high-power lasers changed this situation completely. It is a well-known fact that lasers are essentially new sources of light with high intensity, sharp directivity, and practically ideal monochromaticity. Entirely new phenomena came up in the studies of the interaction of light with atoms. In an intense light field, multiphoton transitions become important. The field disturbs the atomic levels, shifting, broadening, and mixing them. In an extremely strong field the atom ceases to be a bound system. These and similar phenomena on the atomic (microscopic) level determine the variations in the averaged, macroscopic properties of the medium, variations that cause nonlinear-optics phenomena, which radically change the fundamental classical laws of the interaction of light with matter.

A clear and accessible introduction to quantum mechanical methods used to calculate properties of atoms exposed to strong magnetic fields in both laboratory and stellar environments, with the emphasis on hydrogen and helium and their isoelectronic sequences. The results of the detailed calculations are listed in tables, making it a useful handbook for astrophysicists and atomic physicists alike.

A unified account of the rapidly developing field of high-intensity laser-atom interactions, suitable for both graduate students and researchers.

This book presents and describes a series of unusual and striking strong-field phenomena concerning atoms and free electrons. Some of these phenomena are: multiphoton stimulated bremsstrahlung, free-electron lasers, wave-packet physics, above-threshold ionization, and strong-field stabilization in Rydberg atoms. The theoretical foundations and causes of the phenomena are described in detail, with all the approximations and derivations discussed. All the known and relevant experiments are described too, and their results are compared with those of the existing theoretical models.An extensive general theoretical introduction gives a good basis for subsequent parts of the book and is an independent and self-sufficient description of the most efficient theoretical methods of the strong-field and multiphoton physics. This book can serve as a textbook for graduate students.

Papers written during the last 40 years by Claude Cohen-Tannoudji and his collaborators on various physical effects which can be observed on atoms interacting with electromagnetic fields.

This volume offers theoretical investigations of atoms and molecules interacting with pulsed or continuous wave lasers. Theoretical background is included, and the text incorporates several exercises. Additional calculations are performed in the appendices.

The highly positive affirmation and wide reception that this book continues to receive from professors and students ahke is the occasion for this 7th edition. Once again we have included a number of valuable suggestions for improvements, which we address as appropriate. In addition, we refer to a number of developments in atomic physics. Of these new developments in regard to exotic atoms, we mention antihydrogen in par ticular, because fundamental experiments in matter and antimatter can be expected in the future. Furthermore, we have inserted a chapter on the behaviour of atoms in strong elec trical fields. Experiments with corresponding lasers could only recently be realized. We thank our Jenaer colleague, R. Sauerbrey, for his contribution of this chapter. We have also included a new chapter on the behaviour of the hydrogen atom in strong magnetic fields. The results are of profound interest for two very different fields of physics: on the one hand, according to classical physics, one expects chaotic behaviour from Rydberg atoms in magnetic fields that can be created in the laborato ry; thus, an association can be drawn to aspects of chaos theory and the problems of quantum chaos. On the other hand, the very strong fields necessary for low quantum numbers are realized in the cosmos, in particular with white dwarfs and neutron stars.

An introductory textbook on attosecond and strong field physics, covering fundamental theory and modeling techniques, as well as future opportunities and challenges.

Atomic physics and its underlying quantum theory are the point of departure for many modern areas of physics, astrophysics, chemistry, biology, and even electrical engineering. This textbook provides a careful and eminently readable introduction to the results and methods of empirical atomic physics. The student will acquire the tools of quantum physics and at the same time learn about the interplay between experiment and theory. A chapter on the quantum theory of the chemical bond provides the reader with an introduction to molecular physics. Plenty of problems are given to elucidate the material. The authors also discuss laser physics and nonlinear spectroscopy, incorporating latest experimental results and showing their relevance to basic research. Extra items in the second edition include solutions to the exercises, derivations of the relativistic Klein-Gordon and Dirac equations, a detailed theoretical derivation of the Lamb shift, a discussion of new developments in the spectroscopy of inner shells, and new applications of NMR spectroscopy, for instance tomography.