Multi-mass velocity map imaging study of the 805 nm strong field ionization of CFI

Multi-mass velocity map imaging studies of charged fragments formed by near infrared strong field ionization together with covariance map image analysis offer a new window through which to explore the dissociation dynamics of several different highly charged parent cations, simultaneously - as demonstrated here for the case of CFI cations with charges Z ranging from 1 to at least 5. Previous reports that dissociative ionization of CFI cations yields CF, I and CFI fragment ions are confirmed, and some of the CF fragments are deduced to undergo secondary loss of one or more neutral F atoms. Covariance map imaging confirms the dominance of CF + I products in the photodissociation of CFI cations and, again, that some of the primary CF photofragments can shed one or more F atoms. Rival charge symmetric dissociation pathways to CFI + F and to IF + CF products and charge asymmetric dissociations to CF + I and CFI + F products are all also identified. The findings for parent cations with Z ≥ 3 are wholly new. In all cases, the fragment recoil velocity distributions imply dissociation dynamics in which coulombic repulsive forces play a dominant role. The major photoproducts following dissociation of CFI ions are CF and I, with lesser contributions from the rival CFI + F and CF + I channels. The CF fragment ion images measured at higher incident intensities show a faster velocity sub-group consistent with their formation in tandem with I fragments, from photodissociation of CFI parent ions. The measured velocity distributions of the I fragment ions contain features attributable to CFI photodissociation to CF + I and the images of fragments with mass to charge (m/z) ratio ∼31 show formation of I products that must originate from parent ions with yet higher Z.