Photon-Statistics Control of Strong-Field Rydberg-State Excitation

Photon statistics provides a new control dimension for strong-field bound-state formation. Using a quantum-optical phase-space formulation coupled to time-dependent Schrödinger-equation calculations, we show that field fluctuations enhance multiphoton Rydberg excitation by broadening AC-Stark-shifted resonances, but suppress tunneling-mediated recapture even as ionization increases. A quantum-statistical recapture model attributes the latter to ensemble-induced dispersion of relative path phases. Photon statistics also reshapes Rydberg-manifold parity, linking field statistics to recapture coherence and final-state symmetry.