Measuring nuclear wave functions by laser Coulomb explosion imaging

From exact non-Born-Oppenheimer simulations of dissociative ionization of H -2(+) in an intense (I > 10(15) W/cm(2)), ultrashort laser pulse (tau(p) < 5 fs), we show that it is possible to measure the probability distribution \psi(nu)(R)\(2) initial vibrational state nu through the inversion of the k inetic energy spectrum of the laser-induced Coulomb explosion. The theory o f the inversion method is presented and its application to laser-induced Co ulomb explosion imaging (LCEI) of time-dependent wave packets is demonstrat ed through numerical simulation. (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.