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Updated: Jul 13, 2026

Direct Imaging of Laser-driven Ultrafast Molecular Rotation
Published on: February 4, 2017
Direct measurement of the angular dependence of ionization for N2, O2, and CO2 in intense laser fields
Domagoj Pavicić1, Kevin F Lee, D M Rayner
1National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0R6, Canada.
Abstract:
We experimentally measure the ionization probability as a function of alignment angle of three molecules in intense laser fields: nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. Unlike atoms, molecules have a rotational degree of freedom. By controlling the alignment of the molecule relative to the laser field, molecules offer additional ways to understand strong-field ionization. The angular dependence of ionization directly maps to the orbital symmetry of each molecule. Carbon dioxide is seen to have a very sharp preference for ionization when aligned at 45 degrees to the laser field, in significant disagreement with current theories.
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