Relocking of intrinsic angular momenta in collisions of diatoms with ions: Capture of H2(<i>j</i> = 0,1) by H2+

Abstract

Rate coefficients for capture of H₂(j = 0,1) by H₂⁺ are calculated in perturbed rotor approximation, i.e., at collision energies considerably lower than Bhc (where B denotes the rotational constant of H₂). The results are compared with the results from an axially nonadiabatic channel (ANC) approach, the latter providing a very good approximation from the low-temperature Bethe-Wigner to the high temperature Langevin limit. The classical ANC approximation performs satisfactorily at temperatures above 0.1 K. At 0.1 K, the rate coefficient for j=1 is about 25% higher than that for j = 0 while the latter is close to the Langevin rate coefficient. The Bethe-Wigner limit of the rate coefficient for j = 1 is about twice that for j = 0. The analysis of the relocking of the intrinsic angular momentum of H₂ during the course of the collision illustrates the significance of relocking in capture dynamics in general.