Communication: Direct angle-resolved measurements of collision dynamics with electronically excited molecules: NO(A 2 Σ + ) + Ar

We report direct doubly differential (quantum state and angle-resolved) scattering measurements involving short-lived electronically excited molecules using crossed molecular beams. In our experiment, supersonic beams of nitric oxide and argon atoms collide at 90°. In the crossing region, NO molecul...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of chemical physics 2011-03, Vol.134 (9), p.091101-091101-3
Main Authors: Kay, Jeffrey J., Paterson, Grant, Costen, Matthew L., Strecker, Kevin E., McKendrick, Kenneth G., Chandler, David W.
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:We report direct doubly differential (quantum state and angle-resolved) scattering measurements involving short-lived electronically excited molecules using crossed molecular beams. In our experiment, supersonic beams of nitric oxide and argon atoms collide at 90°. In the crossing region, NO molecules are excited to the A 2 Σ + state by a pulsed nanosecond laser, undergo rotationally inelastic collisions with Ar atoms, and are then detected 400 ns later (approximately twice the radiative lifetime of the A 2 Σ + state) by 1 + 1 ′ multiphoton ionization via the E 2 Σ + state. The velocity distributions of the scattered molecules are recorded using velocity-mapped ion imaging. The resulting images provide a direct measurement of the state-to-state differential scattering cross sections. These results demonstrate that sufficient scattering events occur during the short lifetimes typical of molecular excited states (∼200 ns, in this case) to allow spectroscopically detected quantum-state-resolved measurements of products of excited-state collisions.
ISSN:0021-9606
1089-7690
DOI:10.1063/1.3563016