2-COLOR COHERENT CONTROL OF H2+ PHOTODISSOCIATION IN INTENSE LASER FIELDS

We study the multiphoton dissociation of H-2+ by a coherent superposit ion of an intense short pulsed laser radiation and one of its harmonic s (second or third), in a phase-locked regime. We show that the total dissociation probability, the energy distribution, and the direction o f ejection of the protons are very sensitive to the relative phase of the two radiations. A high degree of control may thus be achieved for the branching ratio between dissociation via bond-softening and above- threshold dissociation, in the realm of current experimental capabilit ies.