Nonlinear dynamics of molecular superrotors

Abstract

We consider a diatomic molecule driven by a linearly polarized laser pulse with a polarization axis rotating with a constant acceleration. This setup is referred to as optical centrifuge, and it is known to lead to high-angular momenta for the molecule (superrotor states) and, possibly, to dissociation. Here we elucidate the dynamical mechanisms behind the creation of superrotor states and their dissociation. We unravel the role of the various parameters of the laser field in these processes by considering reduced Hamiltonian models encapsulating the different phases in the creation of superrotor states, possibly leading to dissociation.

References in corpus (4)

• Effects of ultrafast molecular rotation on collisional decoherence
• Field-free two-direction alignment alternation of linear molecules by elliptic laser pulses
• Observation of nondispersing classical-like molecular rotation
• Field-free molecular alignment induced by elliptically polarized laser pulses: non invasive 3 dimensional characterization