It is shown that semiclassical path representations provide a well-suited framework for the description of the diffraction of Rydberg atoms by laser light. They allow one to relate the momentum exchange between the atomic center-of-mass motion and the laser field directly to elementary laser-assisted collisions between the excited Rydberg electron and the ionic core. Thus besides a convenient calculational tool they provide also direct physical insight into the underlying internal dynamics of the Rydberg atoms.

Erratum: http://prola.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v70/i14/p2200_1