Comparative study of rare gas-H2 triatomic complexes

Abstract

This paper presents a comparative analysis of complexes made of one rare gas (Rg) atom and molecular hydrogen, for five different Rg atoms. In particular, the vibrational band origins have been calculated, as well as the structural properties of the associated wavefunctions. The study is extended to ultra-cold Rg–H2 collisions, object of a recent experiment aimed at producing ultra-cold H2 [1]. The molecular systems are studied variationally using a simple, yet effective, isotropic trial wavefunction. A large number of potential energy surfaces available from the literature is considered. A comparative analysis shows that differences of up to two orders of magnitude exist for the zero-energy elastic cross sections of the five complexes. Corrections to the isotropic model have also been considered, showing no significant effect.