LASER-INDUCED QUANTUM CHAOS IN 1-D CRYSTALS

We study the electronic band structure for a model one-dimensional per iodic potential in the presence of a spatially homogeneous laser field . The statistical properties of the energy bands depend on the couplin g between the crystal and the laser field, going from Poisson to Wigne r-Dyson (GOE) and back to Poisson as the coupling increases. We argue that the classical dynamics of this system resembles that of a periodi cally driven pendulum. We find that the chaotic regime is not restrict ed solely to high-lying bands and should thus be of easier access to o ptical experiments.