A New Computational Approach to Photon-Assisted Tunneling in Intense Driving Fields Based on a Fabry-Perot Analogy

Quantum transport in multiple-barrier systems exposed to intense laser fields is investigated by employing an analogy with the Fabry-Perot interferometer of classical optics. This analogy is exact if no further approximations are introduced. The Fabry- Perot approach is shown to be quite robust: Approximating the barriers by δ-functions with equivalent dc transmission and reflection amplitudes still yields excellent agreement with “exact” orthodox transfer-matrix calculations. The advantage of the former is its much reduced computational demands as well as ease of use. 73.40.Gk, 73.50.Pz, 72.40. + w, 42.50.Hz.