Few cycle dynamics of multiphoton double ionization

In intense field ionization, an electron removed from the atomic core oscil lates in the combined fields of the laser and the parent ion. This oscillat ion forces repeated revivals of its spatial correlation with the bound elec trons. The total probability of double ionization depends on the number of returns and therefore on the number of optical periods in the laser pulse. We observed the yield of Ne2+ relative to Ne+ with 12 fs pulses to be clear ly less compared to 50 fs pulses in qualitative agreement with our theoreti cal model.