Stereodynamical Control of Cold Collisions between Two Aligned D_{2} Molecules

Area of Science:

• Molecular collisions
• Quantum dynamics
• Spectroscopy

Background:

• Resonant scattering enables detailed study of cold molecular collisions.
• Optically preparing and aligning molecules offers precise control over bimolecular interactions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a theoretical framework for four-vector correlations in collisions of aligned molecules.
• To simulate and interpret experimental results of D_{2}(v=2,j=2)+D_{2}(v=2,j=2) collisions.

Main Methods:

• Application of Stark-induced adiabatic Raman passage to prepare aligned D_{2} molecules.
• Development of theoretical formalism for four-vector correlations.
• First-principles simulations of state-prepared D_{2} collisions.

Main Results:

• The developed theory successfully reproduces key features of experimental angular distributions.
• A partial wave resonance with orbital angular momentum ℓ=4 is identified as the primary cause.
• The study provides a theoretical basis for understanding the observed collision dynamics.

Conclusions:

• The theoretical formalism accurately describes state-prepared molecular collisions.
• Resonant scattering of aligned molecules provides deep insights into collision dynamics.
• The findings highlight the importance of partial wave resonances in cold bimolecular collisions.