Rydberg wave packets in molecules

Abstract

Rydberg wave packets are important non-stationary quantum states, bordering on the classical limit of high principal quantum numbers. Molecular Rydberg wave packets are much more complicated than their well-studied atomic counterparts and exhibit many of the dynamical complications shown by larger, more chemical, systems. The interplay between molecular and electronic phase has important implications in coherent control strategies. This review describes both the theory behind molecular Rydberg wave packets and the experimental detail required to observe their dynamics, and is illustrated with examples from both experiment and theory.