AMO Seminar, Friday, November 9, 2012, 1:00 pm Room 4138, Matthias F. Kling

[Jackson, Mary]

Control of strongly coupled electron-nuclear dynamics with near- and mid-infrared few-cycle fields



Matthias F. Kling



J.R. Macdonald Laboratory, Physics Department, Kansas-State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA

kling at phys.ksu.edu<mailto:kling at phys.ksu.edu>



Coherent control of photochemical reactions has been achieved in the last decades by manipulating the laser frequency, phase and polarization. An exciting novel perspective is to directly control a molecular rearrangement by the waveform of a carrier-envelope phase (CEP) stable few-cycle laser pulse. The laser waveform, which may be tailored by the CEP, adds a new paradigm to the existing control schemes and offers the potential to very significantly enhance the possibilities for achieving control over chemical reactions. The laser-guided electron motion in- and outside the molecule may break or even form chemical bonds in the sense of charge-directed reactivity.

We will present an overview of our work on the CEP control of strongly-coupled electron-nuclear dynamics in diatomic and larger molecules [1]. While most studies were performed at near-infrared wavelengths, we will also present recent work with mid-infrared few-cycle pulses [2]. We theoretically found a wavelength scaling in the control of electron localization dynamics in the dissociative ionization of molecular hydrogen. In agreement with this prediction, we experimentally verified a much higher degree of control over charge-localization in the bond-softening dissociation of molecular hydrogen at 2.1 μm. Mid-infrared driver pulses will also be important for our future studies on e.g. controlling the branching ratio at conical intersections with the CEP.

[1] M.F. Kling et al., Sub-cycle coherent control of molecular reactions, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., in preparation.
[2] I. Znakovskaya et al., Subcycle controlled charge-directed reactivity with few-cycle midinfrared pulses, Phys. Rev. Lett 108, 063002 (2012).




Mary Kay Jackson
Physics Department
614-292-7260
Fax 614-292-7557
Jackson.1926 at osu.edu<mailto:Jackson.1926 at osu.edu>

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