RADIAL SQUEEZED STATES AND RYDBERG WAVE-PACKETS

We outline an analytical framework for the treatment of radial Rydberg wave packets produced by short laser pulses in the absence of externa l electric and magnetic fields. Wave packets of this type are localize d in the radial coordinates and have p-state angular distributions. We argue that they can be described by a particular analytical class of squeezed states, called radial squeezed states. For hydrogenic Rydberg atoms, we discuss the time evolution of the corresponding hydrogenic radial squeezed states. They are found to undergo decoherence and coll apse, followed by fractional and full revivals. We also present their uncertainty product and uncertainty ratio as functions of time. Our re sults show that hydrogenic radial squeezed states provide a suitable a nalytical description of hydrogenic Rydberg atoms excited by short-pul sed laser fields.