Infrared laser-induced desorption of N2O condensed on NaCl(100)

A study of infrared laser-induced desorption of N2O condensed on NaCl(1 0 0) is presented. The comparison of the wavelength dependent desorption yield to the linear absorption spectrum shows that desorption of intact molecules occurs at the resonance frequencies of the symmetric stretching and the bending vibration of N2O. The analysis of the time-of-flight spectra yields translational temperatures that are well above the substrate temperature and depend strongly on the applied laser fluence. In addition, the dependence of the desorption signal on layer thickness and substrate temperature is investigated. The results are discussed in the context of different desorption mechanisms, and it is concluded that a resonant heating process can best explain the experimental observations. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.