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Probing resonant energy transfer in collisions of ammonia with Rydberg helium atoms by microwave spectroscopy

Zhelyazkova, V; Hogan, SD; (2017) Probing resonant energy transfer in collisions of ammonia with Rydberg helium atoms by microwave spectroscopy. The Journal of Chemical Physics , 147 (24) , Article 244302. 10.1063/1.5011406. Green open access

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Abstract

We present the results of experiments demonstrating the spectroscopic detection of Forster resonance ¨ energy transfer from NH3 in the X 1A1 ground electronic state to helium atoms in 1sns 3S1 Rydberg levels, where n = 37 and n = 40. For these values of n, the 1sns 3S1 → 1snp 3PJ transitions in helium lie close to resonance with the ground-state inversion transitions in NH3 and can be tuned through resonance using electric fields of less than 10 V/cm. In the experiments, energy transfer was detected by direct state-selective electric field ionization of the 3S1 and 3PJ Rydberg levels and by monitoring the population of the 3DJ levels following pulsed microwave transfer from the 3PJ levels. Detection by microwave spectroscopic methods represents a highly state selective, low-background approach to probing the collisional energy transfer process and the environment in which the atom-molecule interactions occur. The experimentally observed electric-field dependence of the resonant energy transfer process, probed both by direct electric field ionization and by microwave transfer, agrees well with the results of calculations performed using a simple theoretical model of the energy transfer process. For measurements performed in zero electric field with atoms prepared in the 1s40s 3S1 level, the transition from a regime in which a single energy transfer channel can be isolated for detection to one in which multiple collision channels begin to play a role has been identified as the NH3 density was increased.

Type: Article
Title: Probing resonant energy transfer in collisions of ammonia with Rydberg helium atoms by microwave spectroscopy
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1063/1.5011406
Publisher version: http://doi.org/10.1063/1.5011406
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Science & Technology, Physical Sciences, Chemistry, Physical, Physics, Atomic, Molecular & Chemical, Chemistry, Physics, TEMPERATURES
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Physics and Astronomy
URI: https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10044179
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