Strong-field-induced dissociation dynamics of tribromomethane studied using coincident ion momentum imaging

The strong-field-induced dissociation dynamics of tribromomethane (CHBr₃) were investigated as a function of time delay between a pair of 28-femtosecond (fs) near-infrared laser pulses at a peak intensity of 6 x 10¹⁴ Wcm^-2. Hydrogen and bromine migration channels are observed, and the onset of dissociation in the H-migration channel appears to be delayed by 120 fs compared to the direct C-Br bond dissociation. Three- and four-body fragmentation processes are found to occur via both concerted and sequential pathways, with a major contribution from the former. Five-body fragmentation is dominated by concerted bond breakup. The experimental results are compared to Coulomb explosion simulations.