Probing multiphoton light-induced molecular potentials.

ABSTRACT: The strong coupling between intense laser fields and valence electrons in molecules causes distortions of the potential energy hypersurfaces which determine the motion of the nuclei and influence possible reaction pathways. The coupling strength varies with the angle between the light electric field and valence orbital, and thereby adds another dimension to the effective molecular potential energy surface, leading to the emergence of light-induced conical intersections. Here, we demonstrate that multiphoton couplings can give rise to complex light-induced potential energy surfaces that govern molecular behavior. In the laser-induced dissociation of H₂⁺, the simplest of molecules, we measure a strongly modulated angular distribution of protons which has escaped prior o

SUBMITTER: Kubel M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7244592 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature