Interferometric characterization of ultrashort deep ultraviolet pulses using a multiphoton ionization mass spectrometer

The temporal characterization of a femtosecond laser pulse in the deep ultraviolet region using an interferometric autocorrelation scheme is demonstrated. Two-photon ionization of a molecule in a time-of-flight mass spectrometer was used as a nonlinear detector to obtain an autocorrelation trace. This setup proved useful in not only providing a temporal characterization of a pulse but also investigating the ultrafast dynamics of photochemical processes.