Mutual Capture of Dipolar Molecules at Low and Very Low Energies. II. Numerical Study

Capture Theory Models: An overview of their development, experimental verification, and applications to ion-molecule reactions

Since Arrhenius first proposed an equation to account for the behaviour of thermally activated reactions in 1889, significant progress has been made in our understanding of chemical reactivity. A number of capture theory models have been developed over the past several decades to predict the rate coefficients for reactions between ions and molecules-ranging from the Langevin equation (for reactions between ions and non-polar molecules) to more recent fully quantum theories (for reactions at ultra-cold temperatures). A number of different capture theory methods are discussed, with the key assumptions underpinning each approach clearly set out. The strengths and limitations of these capture theory methods are examined through detailed comparisons between low-temperature experimental measurements and capture theory predictions. Guidance is provided on the selection of an appropriate capture theory method for a given class of ion-molecule reaction and set of experimental conditions-identifying when a capture-based model is likely to provide an accurate prediction. Finally, the impact of capture theories on fields such as astrochemical modelling is noted, with some potential future directions of capture-based approaches outlined.

Quantum Spin State Selectivity and Magnetic Tuning of Ultracold Chemical Reactions of Triplet Alkali-Metal Dimers with Alkali-Metal Atoms

We demonstrate that it is possible to efficiently control ultracold chemical reactions of alkali-metal atoms colliding with open-shell alkali-metal dimers in their metastable triplet states by choosing the internal hyperfine and rovibrational states of the reactants as well as by inducing magnetic Feshbach resonances with an external magnetic field. We base these conclusions on coupled-channel statistical calculations that include the effects of hyperfine contact and magnetic-field-induced Zeeman interactions on ultracold chemical reactions of hyperfine-resolved ground-state Na and the triplet NaLi(a^{3}Σ^{+}) producing singlet Na_{2}(^{1}Σ_{g}^{+}) and a Li atom. We find that the reaction rates are sensitive to the initial hyperfine states of the reactants. The chemical reaction of fully spin-polarized, high-spin states of rotationless NaLi(a^{3}Σ^{+},v=0,N=0) molecules with fully spin-polarized Na is suppressed by a factor of 10-100 compared to that of unpolarized reactants. We interpret these findings within the adiabatic state model, which treats the reaction as a sequence of nonadiabatic transitions between the initial nonreactive high-spin state and the final low-spin states of the reaction complex. In addition, we show that magnetic Feshbach resonances can similarly change reaction rate coefficients by several orders of magnitude. Some of these resonances are due to resonant trimer bound states dissociating to the N=2 rotational state of NaLi(a^{3}Σ^{+},v=0) and would thus exist in systems without hyperfine interactions.

Electronic nonadiabatic effects in low temperature radical-radical reactions. I. C(3P) + OH(2Π)

The formation of collision complexes, as a first step towards reaction, in collisions between two open-electronic shell radicals is treated within an adiabatic channel approach. Adiabatic channel potentials are constructed on the basis of asymptotic electrostatic, induction, dispersion, and exchange interactions, accounting for spin-orbit coupling within the multitude of electronic states arising from the separated reactants. Suitable coupling schemes (such as rotational + electronic) are designed to secure maximum adiabaticity of the channels. The reaction between C((3)P) and OH((2)Π) is treated as a representative example. The results show that the low temperature association rate coefficients in general cannot be represented by results obtained with a single (generally the lowest) potential energy surface of the adduct, asymptotically reaching the lowest fine-structure states of the reactants, and a factor accounting for the thermal population of the latter states. Instead, the influence of non-Born-Oppenheimer couplings within the multitude of electronic states arising during the encounter markedly increases the capture rates. This effect extends up to temperatures of several hundred K.