Breaking the strong and weak bonds of OHF−using few-cycle IR + UV laser pulses

Abstract

Results of quantum dynamical simulations of the selective bond breaking of OHF− are presented. A few-cycle IR laser pulse is designed to excite a superposition of asymmetric vibrational eigenstates such that the resulting wavepacket is shifted from its equilibrium position. After a critical time delay, a resonant ultrashort UV pulse is applied that excites the wavepacket to a neutral, dissociative surface and selectively breaks the already extended bond. Thus the preferential products O + HF or OH + F can be obtained by applying the appropriate sequence of few-cycle IR + UV laser pulses, and branching ratios are optimized for both dissociation channels.