Comprehensive analysis of strong-field ionization and dissociation of diatomic nitrogen

Nibarger, J. P.; Menon, Santhosh; Gibson, George N.

doi:10.1103/physreva.63.053406

Cited by 67 publications

(73 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…In fact, Nibarger et al [22] were the first to show the importance of process C and our data on I 2 are consistent with these results. Since process C is crucial to reaching higher charge states of the molecule, it is important to study the dynamics of the (1, 2) → (1, 3) ionization.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…In our data, ionization from (2, 2) → (2, 3) would be representative of this process. The most surprising result from our iodine data and previous work on nitrogen [22] is that this process is unphysical, based on the requirement that R n,m+1 > R n,m . In fact, this anomaly was first recognized by Cornaggia et al [6] a decade ago using a simple Coulomb model.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 64%

“…Recent work by Nibarger et al [22] involving a novel analysis of nitrogen molecules has shed some light on these basic questions. This analysis has revealed that the ionization process does, in fact, start at the equilibrium separation, R e , and that ionization with ultrashort pulses is dominated by the asymmetric channels.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A framework for understanding molecular ionization in strong laser fields

Menon

Nibarger

Gibson

2002

J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys.

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The aim of this paper is to examine the role of excited states and multi-electron interactions in molecular ionization by strong laser fields. We present new data on the ionization and dissociation of iodine molecules that reveal important aspects of the strong field-molecule interaction in the short pulse regime. Our data, along with previous studies, is inconsistent with the simplest and commonly accepted model of molecular ionization in a strong laser field and this has led us to examine closely the individual ionization steps. We have found that a molecule can ionize into several distinct configurations predominantly through multi-electron interactions and the abundance of such configurations is dependent on internuclear separation. The ionization appears to be dominated by pairs of states with gerade and ungerade symmetry, as they have a large dipole coupling and the transition is near resonant with the strong laser field. In a oneelectron molecule, this pair consists of the ground and first excited state whereas in a two-electron molecule this corresponds to the lowest lying pair of ionic states. In this paper, we propose a framework for organizing the numerous ionization pathways based on the electronic configuration of the initial charge state.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 64%

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A framework for understanding molecular ionization in strong laser fields

Menon

Nibarger

Gibson

2002

J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys.

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“…The development of intense lasers has permitted such probing in regimes where simple perturbative treatments are not valid and one must use a nonperturbative semiclassical approximation or a numerical approach. Experiments with molecules display a much richer range of phenomena than with atoms, due to the additional molecular degrees of freedom [1,2,3]. These include above threshold ionization [4,5], multiple ionization [6,7], alignment effects [8], electron localization [9], non-sequential double ionization [10], direct excitation [11], stabilization [12], dissociative recombination [13], and separation effects [14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Simple soluble molecular ionization model

Dunne

Gauthier

2004

Phys. Rev. A

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We present a simple exact analytical solution, using the Weyl-Titchmarsh-Kodaira spectral theorem, for the spectral function of the one-dimensional diatomic molecule model consisting of two attractive delta function wells in the presence of a static external electric field. For sufficiently deep and far apart wells, this molecule supports both an even and an odd state, and the introduction of a static electric field turns these bound states into quasi-bound states which are Stark shifted and broadened. The continuum spectrum also inherits an intricate pattern of resonances which reflect the competition between resonant scattering between the two atomic wells and between the linear potential and one or both atomic well(s). All results are analytic and can be easily plotted. The relation between the large orders of the divergent perturbative Stark shift series and the non-perturbative widths of quasi-bound levels is studied.

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“…Alignment, symmetric and asymmetric charge breakup, enhanced ionization at critical internuclear distance, and a variety of dissociation pathways associated with different electronic states of the parent molecular ions come into play. Many recent studies were dedicated to the study of field-induced alignment [8,9], the angular dependence of the ionization rate [10], and symmetric and asymmetric molecular fragmentation with a single laser pulse [11,12]. These experiments were traditionally conducted by measuring the time of flight and/or kinetic energy release (KER) of the atomic fragments, assuming that this energy originated from Coulomb repulsion of the nuclei.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Time-resolved Coulomb-explosion imaging of nuclear wave-packet dynamics induced in diatomic molecules by intense few-cycle laser pulses

et al. 2011

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We studied the nuclear dynamics in diatomic molecules (N 2 , O 2 , and CO) following their interaction with intense near-IR few-cycle laser pulses. Using Coulomb-explosion imaging in combination with the pump-probe approach, we mapped dissociation pathways of those molecules and their molecular ions. We identified all symmetric and asymmetric breakup channels for molecular ions up to N 5+ 2 , O 4+ 2 , and CO 4+ . For each of those channels we measured the kinetic energy release (KER) spectra as a function of delay between the pump and probe pulses. For both N 2 and O 2 the asymmetric (3,1) channel is only observed for short (<20 fs) delays and completely disappears after that. We interpret this observation as a signature of electron localization taking place in dissociating molecular tri-cations when their internuclear separation reaches about 2.5 times the equilibrium bond length. This is a direct confirmation that electron localization plays an essential role in the universal mechanism of enhanced ionization in homonuclear diatomic molecules. Using classical and quantum mechanical simulations of the time-dependent KER spectra, we identify the pathways and intermediate states involved in the laser-induced dissociation of those molecules.

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Comprehensive analysis of strong-field ionization and dissociation of diatomic nitrogen

Cited by 67 publications

References 44 publications

A framework for understanding molecular ionization in strong laser fields

A framework for understanding molecular ionization in strong laser fields

Simple soluble molecular ionization model

Time-resolved Coulomb-explosion imaging of nuclear wave-packet dynamics induced in diatomic molecules by intense few-cycle laser pulses

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