State reconstruction of molecular spatial rotation

We establish a reconstruction approach for the rotational quantum state of linear molecules possessing a magnetic manifold. Our approximate method contains an iteration with generalized matrix inverses, processing the tomographic integral of the time-dependent molecular-axis distribution in a polar angle. As shown in a simulated example for an alignment state, the density matrix is determined in a high fidelity. An analytic tomographic formula is also derived for the symmetric top rotation. The state coherent in the quantum space of both the angular momentum and its magnetic projection can be approximately retrieved from the observable time-resolved solid-angle distribution of the molecular axis.