This award supports cooperative research on molecular collision cross-sections between S. K. Srivastava of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Caltech and G.G.B. de Souza and A.C.A. de Souza at the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and Ione Iga, Lee Mu Tao and Jose Carlos Nogueira at the Universidade Federal do Sao Carlos (UFSC) in Brazil. Srivastava has collaborated with the two groups since 1981. The work proposed will be carried out at all three institutions with the participation of the Brazilians at JPL and the U.S. side in Brazil. Measurements of the cross-sections for molecules containing silicon for ionization, dissociative attachment and polar dissociation will be carried out at JPL. At UFRJ, photo-absorption cross-sections for inner shell exitation will be measured while the kinetic energy spectra of the dissociation products (charged ions) will be measured at UFSC. This work is particularly timely with regard to plasma chemistry of silanes used in semiconductor processing. Progress should be rapid because the apparatus is already set up and in operation. Essential parts of the experimental work exist at each of the participating institutions so that the collaboration is essential for the research and clearly of mutual benefit to all three.
