Laser-Induced Electron Transfer in the Dissociative Multiple Ionization of Argon Dimers

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

We report on an experimental and theoretical study of the ionization-fragmentation dynamics of argon dimers in intense few-cycle laser pulses with a tagged carrier-envelope phase. We find that a field-driven electron transfer process from one argon atom across the system boundary to the other argon atom triggers subcycle electron-electron interaction dynamics in the neighboring atom. This attosecond electron-transfer process between distant entities and its implications manifests itself as a distinct phase-shift between the measured asymmetry of electron emission curves of the Ar⁺+Ar²⁺ and Ar²⁺+Ar²⁺ fragmentation channels. This letter discloses a strong-field route to controlling the dynamics in molecular compounds through the excitation of electronic dynamics on a distant molecule by driving intermolecular electron-transfer processes.