STRONG LASER FIELD INTERACTION WITH DIATOMIC MOLECULES: FROM THE ULTRA-SHORT TO LONG-PULSE REGIME

Abstract

In the present paper, we compare novel MEDI results on iodine obtained with 30 ps laser pulses to those obtained in the femtosecond regime. The results indicate laser-induced trapping of the molecules not only in the ultra-short pulse regime, but also for the long pulses, since the fragment kinetic energy releases are essentially the same, although the pulse duration is varied over more than two orders of magnitude. Most interestingly, with 30 ps pulses significant post-dissociation ionization of the In+-fragments observed for the first time, proving that near-Coulomb energies and post-dissociation ionization can be observed simultaneously. A femtosecond double-pulse experiment confirms our recent hypothesis of molecular stabilization governing the MEDI interaction.