Ultrafast Control of the Internuclear Distance with Parabolic Chirped Pulses

Recently, control over the bond length of a diatomic molecule with the use of parabolic chirped pulses was predicted on the basis of numerical calculations [Chang; et al. Phys. Rev. A 2010, 82, 063414]. To achieve the required bond elongation, a laser scheme was proposed that implies population inversion and vibrational trapping in a dissociative state. In this work we identify two regimes where the scheme works, called the strong and the weak adiabatic regimes. We define appropriate parameters to identify the thresholds where the different regimes operate. The strong adiabatic regime is characterized by a quasi-static process that requires longer pulses. The molecule is stabilized at a bond distance and at a time directly controlled by the pulse in a time-symmetrical way. In this work we analyze the degree of control over the period and elongation of the bond as a function of the pulse bandwidth. The weak adiabatic regime implies dynamic deformation of the bond, which allows for larger bond stretch and the use of shorter pulses. The dynamics is anharmonic and not time-symmetrical and the final state is a wave packet in the ground potential. We show how the vibrational energy of the wave packet can be controlled by changing the pulse duration.