Mapping the evolution of optically generated rotational wave packets in a room-temperature ensemble of D{sub 2}

Journal Article · Wed Aug 15 00:00:00 EDT 2007 · Physical Review. A

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVA.76.023414· OSTI ID:21015994

Bryan, W A; English, E M. L.; Wood, J; Newell, W R ^[1]; McKenna, J; Calvert, C R; Williams, I D ^[2]; Turcu, I C. E.; Collier, J L ^[3]; Torres, R ^[4]

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1. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT (United Kingdom)
2. Department of Pure and Applied Physics, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT7 1NN (United Kingdom)
3. Central Laser Facility, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon OX11 0QX (United Kingdom)
4. Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, Prince Consort Road, London SW7 2BW (United Kingdom)

A coherent superposition of rotational states in D{sub 2} has been excited by nonresonant, ultrafast (12 fs), intense (2x10{sup 14} W cm{sup -2}) 800 nm laser pulses, leading to impulsive dynamic alignment. Field-free evolution of this rotational wave packet has been mapped to high temporal resolution by a time-delayed pulse, initiating rapid double ionization, which is highly sensitive to the angle of orientation of the molecular axis with respect to the polarization direction, {theta}. The detailed fractional revivals of the neutral D{sub 2} wave packet as a function of {theta} and evolution time have been observed and modeled theoretically.

• OSTI ID: 21015994
• Journal Information: Physical Review. A, Vol. 76, Issue 2; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevA.76.023414; (c) 2007 The American Physical Society; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1050-2947
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS
DEUTERIUM
EVOLUTION
LASER RADIATION
ORIENTATION
PHOTOIONIZATION
PHOTON-MOLECULE COLLISIONS
POLARIZATION
PULSES
RESOLUTION
ROTATIONAL STATES
TEMPERATURE RANGE 0273-0400 K
TIME DELAY
VELOCITY
WAVE PACKETS