Quantum-state-sensitive detection of alkali dimers on helium nanodroplets by laser-induced Coulomb explosion

Rubidium dimers residing on the surface of He nanodroplets are doubly ionized by an intense fs laser pulse leading to fragmentation into a pair of $\mathrm{Rb^+}$ ions. We show that the kinetic energy of the $\mathrm{Rb^+}$ fragment ions can be used to identify dimers formed in either the X $^1\Sigma_{\mathrm{g}}^+$ ground state or in the lowest-lying triplet state, a $^3\Sigma_{\mathrm{u}}^+$. From the experiment, we estimate the abundance ratio of dimers in the a and X states as a function of the mean droplet size and find values between 4:1 and 5:1. Our technique applies generally to dimers and trimers of alkali atoms, here also demonstrated for $\mathrm{Li_2}$, $\mathrm{Na_2}$ and $\mathrm{K_2}$, and will enable fs time-resolved measurements of their rotational and vibrational dynamics, possibly with atomic structural resolution.