Angular distributions of the fragments from coulomb explosions of diatomic molecules in intense laser fields

Abstract

The angular distributions of the fragments from a Coulomb explosion of a diatomic heteronuclear molecule during multielectron dissociative ionization in a superintense field are considered in terms of classical mechanics. The patterns of angular distributions of the Coulomb explosion fragments are shown to differ in different ranges of laser pulse parameters. In particular, there are two distinct modes of fragment separation: separation in a Coulomb field and separation in the field of an effective “fragment + field” potential. The effective potential includes both the force of Coulomb repulsion between the fragments and the period-averaged force exerted on the system by the field; it can be determined by using the Kramers-Henneberger method. The limits of applicability of the Kramers-Henneberger method to the problem in question are discussed. These limits specify the range of field parameters in which the fragments fly apart in a direction perpendicular to the field for the initially arbitrary orientation of the molecular axis relative to the field.