A laser two-photon process can ionize a photoabsorbing molecule selectively though a one-photon resonant process without ionizing the bulk surface. By measuring the ionized species through photoconductivity, this technique has been found to be successful for highly sensitive detection of aromatic molecules on a metal surface in ambient air. The photocurrent was due to electron drift and oxygen anion drift in ambient air. The photocurrent signal of various aromatic molecules was approximately proportional to the absorbance at the laser wavelength. The detection limits were on the order of 10(-13) mol/cm2 in favorable cases, which correspond to less than 1 % coverage of the surface.