We explore the laser-induced ionization dynamics of N2 and CO2 molecules subjected to a few-cycle, linearly polarized, 800,nm laser pulse using effective two-dimensional single active electron time-dependent quantum simulations. We show that the elec
tron recollision process taking place after an initial tunnel ionization stage results in quantum interference patterns in the energy resolved photo-electron signals. If the molecule is initially aligned perpendicular to the field polarization, the position and relative heights of the associated fringes can be related to the molecular geometrical and orbital structure, using a simple inversion algorithm which takes into account the symmetry of the initial molecular orbital from which the ionized electron is produced. We show that it is possible to extract inter-atomic distances in the molecule from an averaged photon-electron signal with an accuracy of a few percents.
We address the feasibility of imaging geometric and orbital structure of a polyatomic molecule on an attosecond time-scale using the laser induced electron diffraction (LIED) technique. We present numerical results for the highest molecular orbitals
of the CO2 molecule excited by a near infrared few-cycle laser pulse. The molecular geometry (bond-lengths) is determined within 3% of accuracy from a diffraction pattern which also reflects the nodal properties of the initial molecular orbital. Robustness of the structure determination is discussed with respect to vibrational and rotational motions with a complete interpretation of the laser-induced mechanisms.
