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Phys. Rev. Lett. 88, 023001 (2001) [4 pages]

White-Light-Induced Fragmentation of Toluene

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A. M. Müller1,*, B. Witzel2,†, C. J. G. J. Uiterwaal1,‡,§, J. Wanner1, and K.-L. Kompa1
1Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, Hans-Kopfermann-Strasse 1, 85748 Garching, Germany
2Department of Molecular and Optical Physics, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Hermann-Herder-Strasse 3, 79104 Freiburg, Germany

Received 15 August 2001; published 21 December 2001

We investigate the influence of continuum generation on the photofragmentation dynamics of the toluene molecule. By sending an 80-fs Ti:sapphire laser beam through a 2-mm-thick CaF2 plate we show that even moderately broadened laser frequency spectra considerably increase the degree of fragmentation, while it is nearly absent without continuum generation. The measured broadening of the frequency spectra and the known Raman-active vibrational modes of toluene afford an explanation in terms of a stimulated Raman scattering scheme, in which the molecule absorbs large amounts of vibrational energy.

© 2002 The American Physical Society

URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.88.023001
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.88.023001
PACS:
33.80.-b, 42.65.Dr

*Present address: JILA, University of Colorado and National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO 80309-0440.

†To whom correspondence should be addressed.Email addresses: witzel@uni-freiburg.de; cuiterwaal2@unlnotes.unl.edu

‡

§Present address: Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, 116 Brace Lab, Lincoln, NE 68588-0111.

 
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