Imaging attosecond coherent electron motion in molecules

Molecular high harmonic generation (MHOHG) is obtained from numerical solution of the time dependent Schrödinger equation (TDSE) for the 3-D one electron H32+ linear system exposed to ultrashort (two-cycle) intense (I = 1014 W/cm2) IR laser pulse in order to illustrate and image coherent electron motion on attosecond (1 asec = 10−18 sec) time scale. Such electron motion can occur in electron wavepackets created by nonadiabatic interactions at avoided crossings near conical intersections or by asec photoexcitation. It is found that the MHOHG spectra can monitor electron localization on asec time scale.