One-Electron Model for the Electronic Response of Metal Surfaces to Subfemtosecond Photoexcitation

The recent work of Cavalieri et al. [Nature (London) 449, 1029 (2007)] has provided the first experimental observation of electron dynamics at metal surfaces in the subfemtosecond range. We explain the experimental findings using a full time-dependent approach within a one-dimensional model that includes the main ingredients of the short time physics involved in the experiment.