Fragmentation of molecules studied with laser-induced Coulomb explosion imaging and femtosecond pump-probe experiments

We report on the experimental realisation of time-resolved coincident Coulomb explosion imaging of H-2-fragmentation in 10(14) W/cm(2) laser fields. Combining a high-resolition 'reaction microscope' and a fs pump-probe setup, we map the motion of wave packets dissociating via one- or two-photon channels, respectively, and observe two region of enhanced ionization in accordance with earlier theoretical predictions. The long-term interferometric stability of our system allows us to extend pump-probe experiments into the region of overlapping pulses, which offers new possibilities for the manipulation of ultrafast molecular fragmentation dynamics.