A robust all-non-optical method for the characterization of single-shot few-cycle laser pulses

An all non-optical method for accurately determining the pulse parameters of individual few-cycle laser shots is presented. By analyzing the "left" and "right" asymmetry of high-energy photoelectrons along the polarization axis using the recently developed quantitative rescattering theory, we show that the carrier-envelope phase, the pulse duration and the peak intensity of each single-shot pulse can be readily retrieved. Unlike optical measurements, this method provides the laser intensity in the interaction region directly.