  This paper reports on laser-induced multiphoton ionization at 266 nm of
liquid argon in a time projection chamber (LAr TPC) detector. The electron
signal produced by the laser beam is a formidable tool for the calibration and
monitoring of next-generation large-mass LAr TPCs. The detector that we
designed and tested allowed us to measure the two-photon absorption
cross-section of LAr with unprecedented accuracy and precision:
sigma_ex=(1.24\pm 0.10stat \pm 0.30syst) 10^{-56} cm^4s{-1}.
