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Title: Rotationally inelastic transitions between the fine-structure levels of the /sup 3/. sigma. /sup -//sub g/ electronic ground state of O/sub 2/

Journal Article · · J. Chem. Phys.; (United States)
OSTI ID:6795029

Infinite-order sudden calculations, including the effects due to the coupling of the rotational and the electronic spin angular momenta, are reported for the inelastic differential and integral cross sections of O/sub 2/ in its /sup 3/..sigma../sup -//sub g/ electronic ground state, scattering against He and Ar. These calculations demonstrate that measurements of differential cross sections that fully resolve the dependence on the O/sub 2/ fine-structure levels can in fact provide detailed information about the anisotropy of the van der Waals interaction potential much more readily than measurements of the total or unresolved j state inelastic differential cross sections. Several propensity rules for transfer of rotational energy in /sup 3/..sigma.. electronic states, which were derived recently by Alexander and Dagdigian (J. Chem. Phys. 79, 302 (1983)) in the large-j limit, are found to be valid for O/sub 2/ for all values of j.

Research Organization:
Guelph-Waterloo Centre for Graduate Work in Chemistry and Department of Chemistry, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
OSTI ID:
6795029
Journal Information:
J. Chem. Phys.; (United States), Vol. 81:6
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English