The dynamical Stark effect of excitons is investigated in high-quality
ZnSe layers by means of one-color pump-and-probe spectroscopy, The St
ark shift of free excitons is measured under excitation into the absor
ption-free energy region between the fundamental 1S and 2S resonances.
The sign of the Stark shift is found to be negative which directly co
ntrasts with theoretical predictions based on Hartree-Fock calculation
s for free excitons. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd