Validity of time-dependent Hartree-Fock theory for the multiphoton ionization of atoms

Abstract

The validity of time-dependent Hartree-Fock (TDHF) theory is explored for the multiphoton ionization of atoms. The 3D electrostatic interaction is replaced by a 1D soft-core interaction which allows the construction of an N-electron atom in only N dimensions. For multiphoton ionization of a two-electron ‘‘He’’ atom in its ground state, we solve the time-dependent Schrödinger equation directly on a 2D lattice and solve a 1D formulation of the TDHF equations. The 2D lattice solution compares favorably with the frozen-core TDHF results, but not with the full nonlinear TDHF results.