23
September 2004
Divide and rule
A molecule's properties are determined by the initial-state wavefunction of its electrons and nuclei. The nature of these correlations is revealed by studying what happens when the molecule breaks into its constituent parts. The principle, measuring the momentum of the emitted charged particles, is simple but the experiments are complex. Using the COLTRIMS technique (cold target recoil ion momentum spectroscopy), the complete fragmentation of a molecule of fundamental importance has now been observed. Low-energy fragmentation of deuterium was induced by absorption of a single photon by a single deuterium molecule. The resulting nuclei and electrons were tracked to determine momentum and direction of movement, properties that depend on the initial separation of the nuclei in the molecule. That's the hard part done; next comes the other hard part, the intricate calculations needed to explain the findings in detail.
Complete photo-fragmentation of the deuterium
molecule
T. WEBER , A. O. CZASCH, O. JAGUTZKI, A. K. M�LLER,
V. MERGEL, A. KHEIFETS, E. ROTENBERG, G. MEIGS, M. H. PRIOR, S. DAVEAU,
A. LANDERS, C. L. COCKE, T. OSIPOV, R. D�EZ MUI�O, H. SCHMIDT-B�CKING
& R. D�RNER
Nature 431, 437–440 (2004); doi:10.1038/nature02839
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Molecular physics: Break-up breakdown
TIM REDDISH
Molecules ionize and fragment when subjected to energetic radiation. The
behaviour of a simple molecule, deuterium, can now be tracked through
this process in greater detail than ever before.
Nature 431, 404–405 (2004); doi:10.1038/431404a
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