Spatiotemporal imaging of ultrafast molecular motion: collapse and revival of the D+2 nuclear wave packet
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Updated: Jul 18, 2026

Direct Imaging of Laser-driven Ultrafast Molecular Rotation
Published on: February 4, 2017
Th Ergler1, A Rudenko, B Feuerstein
1Max-Planck-Institut für Kernphysik, D-69029 Heidelberg, Germany.
Abstract:
We report on a real-time imaging of the ultrafast D(+)2 rovibrational nuclear wave-packet motion performed using a combination of a pump-probe setup with 7 fs laser pulses and a "reaction-microscope" spectrometer. We observe fast dephasing (collapse) of the vibrational wave packet and its subsequent revival and prove rotational excitation in ultrashort laser pulses. Channel-selective Fourier analysis of the wave packet's long-term (approximately 3000 fs) evolution allows us to resolve its individual constituents, revealing unique information on the mechanisms of strong-field ionization and dissociation.
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