Application of a time-resolved event counting technique in velocity map imaging

We illustrate the use of a three-dimensional (x,y,t) charge-coupled-device (CCD) camera detection system in an ion imaging experiment. The time measurement is based on the decay characteristics of the phosphor screen, which is recorded in two successive images by a double exposure CCD camera. The strength of the method is illustrated in a velocity map imaging experiment on iodine molecules that are ionized and dissociated by intense femtosecond laser pulses. Singly and doubly charged iodine fragments are detected and their (x,y) coordinates and arrival time are recorded in an event counting routine. We estimate the time resolution of the system to be 1.3 ns. We show that the fragment velocity distribution derived from the (x,y,t) data is similar and in some conditions more accurate than the distribution obtained by a mathematical inversion of the (x,y) data only. This principle of detection can be used in all situations in which inversion methods are impossible, for example, when the particle distribution does not have an axis of symmetry. (C) 2002 American Institute of Physics.