Nonsequential and sequential fragmentation of CO2(3+) in intense laser fields

Area of Science:

• * Physical Chemistry
• * Atomic and Molecular Physics
• * Laser-Induced Dynamics

Background:

• * Understanding molecular fragmentation dynamics is crucial for various scientific fields.
• * Femtosecond laser interactions with molecules provide insights into ultrafast processes.
• * Previous studies have explored molecular ion fragmentation, but precise structural reconstruction remains challenging.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To experimentally investigate the three-body fragmentation dynamics of carbon dioxide (CO(2)) initiated by intense femtosecond laser pulses.
• * To separate and identify sequential and nonsequential fragmentation pathways of CO(2)(3+).
• * To reconstruct the geometric structure of the CO(2)(3+) ion before fragmentation.

Main Methods:

• * Utilized intense femtosecond laser pulses to initiate fragmentation of CO(2).
• * Precisely measured three-dimensional momentum vectors of correlated atomic ions (O(+) + C(+) + O(+)).
• * Performed high-level ab initio calculations of the CO(2)(3+) potential energy surface.

Main Results:

• * Successfully separated and identified sequential and nonsequential fragmentation pathways for CO(2)(3+).
• * Reconstructed the geometric structure of CO(2)(3+) prior to fragmentation.
• * Found the reconstructed structure to be highly similar to the neutral CO(2) molecule.

Conclusions:

• * Coulomb explosion is a viable method for imaging the geometric structures of polyatomic molecules.
• * Accurate clarification of fragmentation dynamics and provision of appropriate dissociation potentials are key.
• * This study provides a foundation for using Coulomb explosion in molecular structure determination.