In this project in the Experimental Physical Chemistry program of the Chemistry Division, Prof. R.E. Miller of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will continue a research program on problems of the dynamics of energy transfer, specifically those present in weakly bound molecular complexes and in molecule-surface interactions. For the weakly bound complexes there will be spectroscopic characterization to determine the details of photodissociation dynamics and the associated potential energy surfaces, as well as the state-to-state probing of the fragments resulting from phtodissociation. These experiments are extended into the realm of gas-surface scattering, especially that of scattering of non-linear molecules and the vibrational and rotational energies transferred in this process. The dynamics of chemical reactions stands at the forefront of contemporary research in physical chemistry. The purpose is to obtain a detailed understanding of reaction processes at the molecular level. Systems that are investigated include stable molecules, weakly bound complexes composed of stable molecules, and molecules interacting with solid surfaces in a scattering process. Gas phase molecules or complexes elevated to high electronic, vibrational or rotational states of energy by photoexcitation often dissociate into fragments having characteristic energy distributions in the electronic, vibrational, rotational, and translational degrees of freedom. Since there are usually several possible paths along which a dissociation process is allowed to occur, it is important to understand the details of these processes to allow correct modeling of the overall reaction phenomenon. Similar reasons guide the research in scattering of molecules by solid surfaces, especially those that play a role in catalytic reactions.
