Abstract

We demonstrate that the vibrational nuclear motion of singly ionized argon dimers can be controlled with two ultrashort laser pulses of different wavelengths. In particular, we observe a striking "gap" in the pump-probe-delay-dependent kinetic-energy release spectrum only if the probe-pulse wavelength exceeds the pump-pulse wavelength. This "frustrated dissociation effect" is reproduced by our two-state quantum mechanical model, validating its interpretation as a pump-pulse-initiated population transfer between dipole-coupled Born-Oppenheimer electronic states of the dissociating Ar(2)(+) molecular ion. Our numerical results also reproduce the measured collapse and fractional revival of the oscillating Ar(2)(+) nuclear wave packet, and, for single-pulse dissociation, the decrease of the kinetic-energy release with increasing laser wavelength.

Keywords

Atomic physicsPhysicsLaserDissociation (chemistry)IonizationKinetic energyWavelengthPopulationArgonWave packetIonOpticsChemistryQuantum mechanics

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Publication Info

Year
2013
Type
article
Volume
110
Issue
3
Pages
033005-033005
Citations
17
Access
Closed

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Cite This

Jian Wu, Maia Magrakvelidze, Arno Vredenborg et al. (2013). Steering the Nuclear Motion in Singly Ionized Argon Dimers with Mutually Detuned Laser Pulses. Physical Review Letters , 110 (3) , 033005-033005. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.110.033005

Identifiers

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.110.033005