Measurements of optical phase variations using interfering multiphoton ionization processes

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Abstract
We have used interfering multiphoton ionization processes to measure changes in the relative phase between two optical laser beams. In this work, the phase variation is due to the π phase shift of a focused Gaussian beam as it propagates through the focal region. An array of linear collection electrodes is used to measure the multiphoton ionization rate as a function of the distance from the beam waist when two laser fields are resonant with an atomic transition, one through a linear process, the other through a three-photon process.