English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Global: Zendy Plus annual

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Global: Zendy Tools annual

Global: Zendy Free Plan

Global: Zendy Tools monthly

Global: Zendy Plus monthly

A time-dependent bond-hardening process is discovered in a polyatomicmolecule (tetramethyl silane, TMS) using few-cycle pulses of intense 800 nmlight. In conventional mass spectrometry, symmetrical molecules like TMS do notexhibit a prominent molecular ion (TMS$^+$) as unimolecular dissociation into[Si(CH$_3$)$_3]^+$ proceeds very fast. Under strong field and few-cycleconditions, this dissociation channel is defeated by time-dependentbond-hardening: a field-induced potential well is created in the TMS$^+$potential energy curve that effectively traps a wavepacket. The time-dependenceof this bond hardening process is verified using longer-duration ($\geq$ 100fs) pulses; the relatively "slower" fall-off of optical field in such pulsesallows the initially trapped wavepacket to leak out, thereby rendering TMS$^+$unstable once again. Our results are significant as they demonstrate (i)optical generation of polyatomic ions that are normally inaccessible and (ii)optical control of dynamics in strong fields, with distinct advantages overweak-field control scenarios that demand a narrow bandwidth appropriate for aspecified transition.

Intense 2-cycle laser pulses induce time-dependent bond-hardening in a polyatomic molecule