We have numerically explored the asymmetry in the branching ratio of the photofragments in the photodissociation of HD${}^{+}$ (neutral D and neutral H), leading to the possibility of localization of the electron on a chosen nucleus by careful tuning of the laser parameters. For two different frequencies we show that, starting from an initial stationary wave function, proper tuning of the pulse duration (2σ) and peak intensities ($I^0$) of the laser pulses can lead to very different branching ratios of the two reaction channels. The results are interpreted in terms of the propagation of the nonstationary wave packet through regions having dominant radiative or nonradiative interactions at different times. We also investigate what effect the choice of initial vibrational state has on the overall asymmetry in the branching ratio of the dissociation products.

• Received 13 April 2011

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.83.063413