P -H symmetry breaking in dissociative photoionization of H₂ due to the molecular ion interacting with the ejected electron

We propose a mechanism of electron localization and molecular symmetry breaking in dissociative photoionization of the H₂ molecule. The Coulomb field of the ejected electron can induce the transition of the remaining H²⁺ ion from the gerade ²Σ_g ¹(1sσ_g) to the ungerade ²Σ _u¹(2pσ_u) electronic state when the nuclei in a bound vibrational state are near the outer turning point. The superposition of this process with a direct transition to the vibrational continuum should produce a nongerade ionic state, which results in observed asymmetry in the p-H ejection relative to the electron ejection direction at a small kinetic energy release.