Laser-pulse photoassociation in a thermal gas of atoms

A nonperturbative treatment is presented for laser-pulse-driven formation of heteronuclear diatomic molecules in a thermal gas of atoms. Based on the assumption of full controllability, the maximum possible photoassociation yield is obtained. A one-dimensional model is used for calculating the photoassociation probability as a function of the laser parameters as well as for different temperatures. The dependence of the photoassociation yield on the laser frequency and amplitude reveals complex patterns of one- and multiphoton transitions. The photoassociation yield induced by subpicosecond pulses of a priori fixed shape is very low compared to the maximum possible yield.