Ionization and dissociation of H sub 2 in intense laser fields at 1. 064. mu. m, 532 nm, and 355 nm

We present a systematic experimental study of the dissociation and ionization of molecular hydrogen in intense laser fields at three different wavelengths: 1.064 {mu}m, 532 nm, and 355 nm. The light intensity ranges from 10{sup 13} W/cm{sup 2} to 10{sup 15} W/cm{sup 2}. Measurements include electron spectra and angular distributions, kinetic-energy spectra and angular distributions of ion fragments, and ion dissociation fractions. We report a number of interesting and novel phenomena, including the following: above-threshold ionization to various vibrational states in the molecular ion, production of very-high-energy electrons from ionization at 1.064 {mu}m, enhanced dissociation of the H{sub 2}{sup +} molecular ion via the mechanism of bond softening, above-threshold dissociation, and evidence for the alignment of the molecule in a high-intensity laser field.