Response of C60 and Cn to ultrashort laser pulses

Abstract

In this paper we introduce a method for realistic simulations of nonadiabatic processes, including the interaction of light with matter. Calculations of the response of C60 and carbon chains to laser pulses demonstrate that even rather subtle features are correctly described. For example, in C60 the pentagonal-pinch mode is dominant at low fluence, the breathing mode is dominant at high fluence, and dimers are preferentially emitted during photofragmentation. In carbon chains, on the other hand, trimers tend to be broken off. After collisional fragmentation, the remnants of a C60 molecule tend to reform their bonds, yielding new 5, 6, or 7 membered rings.