Strong-field dissociation and ionization of H-2(+) using ultrashort laser pulses

By using laser pulses (40 fsec) on the order of the vibrational period of H-2(+) and high-dynamic ranee detection electronics, we have removed, for the first time, the ambiguities in interpreting the proton kinetic energy spectrum resulting from the dissociation and ionization of H-2(+). We then use the kinetic energy spectrum to directly test recent calculations of the ionization rate of H-2(+) as a function of internuclear separation.