Calculated electron impact spin-coupled rotational cross-sections for ^{2S + 1}Σ⁺ linear molecules: CN as an example

Stephen Harrison , Jonathan Tennyson , Alexandre Faure (1)

1 IPAG - Institut de Planétologie et d'Astrophysique de Grenoble

Here we present the development and adaptation of existing atom-molecule collision theory in order to calculate spin-coupled rotationally resolved cross-sections for electron-molecule collisions. A full theory is developed from the existing work for this new process and then implemented using the infinite order sudden approximation to simplify the method; this approximation is shown to hold for the results of a simple test. The formalism is used to compute spin-rotation cross-sections for electron collisions with the CN radical in its ²Σ⁺ ground electronic state. Results for transitions out of the ground spin rotational state are presented. A general fortran program, ROTLIN_S, is developed for this task.

Domaines: Planète et Univers [physics]

Stephen Harrison, Jonathan Tennyson, Alexandre Faure. Calculated electron impact spin-coupled rotational cross-sections for ^{2S + 1}Σ⁺ linear molecules: CN as an example. Journal of Physics B: Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics, 2012, 45, ⟨10.1088/0953-4075/45/17/175202⟩. ⟨insu-03612408⟩