Product ion distribution from the femtosecond laser irradiation of small acyclic hydrocarbon molecules

•This paper discusses small organic hydrocarbon chain molecules in intense laser fields.•Laser molecular ionization and time of flight mass spectrometry has been used in experimentation.•Experimental findings show that parent ion peaks are stronger in alkene chains than corresponding alkane chains.•In linear chain hydrocarbon molecules stability with respect to femtosecond laser field increases by introduction of a carbon–carbon double bond.

Small alkane and alkene molecules containing a single CC double bond were ionized using intense 800 nm, 100 fs laser pulses. Time of flight mass spectra shows that strong dissociation of the parent molecule occurs in purely single bonded carbon chains while alkenes gain stability from the presence of a single CC bond.

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