Multilevel rotational transitions in the intermediate stage of three-photon ionization of molecules

Ionization and dissociation of diatomic molecules induced by a weak field (after preliminarily populating an intermediate level) and by intense, linearly polarized monochromatic radiation have been studied. Field-induced mixing of rotational components of various electronic-vibrational states of molecules (such as CO, NO, etc.) at field strength f∼10⁻⁴–10⁻⁵ atomic units can lead to migration among states with different angular momenta J. Therefore, ions with rotational momenta J ⁺ much higher than those prescribed by selection rules for three-photon absorption can be formed from molecules in the ground state. The possibility of selective formation of ions with J ⁺≫1 and zero projection of the angular momentum on the polarization vector of the external electromagnetic radiation has been investigated. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 111, 1624–1632 (May 1997)