We derive a classical path expression for a pressure-broadened atomic spectral line shape that allows for an electric-dipole moment that is dependent on the position of perturbers. The theory is applied to the atomic hydrogen Lyman-␣ and Lyman-␤ lines broadened by collisions with neutral and ionized atomic hydrogen. The far wings of the Lyman series lines exhibit satellites, enhancements that may be associated with quasimolecular states of H 2 and H 2 ϩ . The sizes of these features depend on the values of the electric-dipole moments at the internuclear separations responsible for the satellites. Profiles are computed with and without spatial dependence of the dipole moment, and are compared with astronomical and laboratory observations. We conclude that in the present case the variation of the dipole moment is an important factor that cannot be neglected.

Context. Magnesium is an element of significant astrophysical importance, often traced in late-type stars using lines of neutral magnesium, which is expected to be subject to departures from local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE). The importance of Mg, together with the unique range of spectral features in late-type stars probing different parts of the atom, as well as its relative simplicity from an atomic physics point of view, makes it a prime target and test bed for detailed ab initio non-LTE modelling in stellar atmospheres. Previous non-LTE modelling of spectral line formation has, however, been subject to uncertainties due to lack of accurate data for inelastic collisions with electrons and hydrogen atoms. Aims. In this paper we build and test a Mg model atom for spectral line formation in late-type stars with new or recent inelastic collision data and no associated free parameters. We aim to reduce these uncertainties and thereby improve the accuracy of Mg non-LTE modelling in late-type stars.Methods. For the low-lying states of Mg i, electron collision data were calculated using the R-matrix method. Hydrogen collision data, including charge transfer processes, were taken from recent calculations by some of us. Calculations for collisional broadening by neutral hydrogen were also performed where data were missing. These calculations, together with data from the literature, were used to build a model atom. This model was then employed in the context of standard non-LTE modelling in 1D (including average 3D) model atmospheres in a small set of stellar atmosphere models. First, the modelling was tested by comparisons with observed spectra of benchmark stars with well-known parameters. Second, the spectral line behaviour and uncertainties were explored by extensive experiments in which sets of collisional data were changed or removed. Results. The modelled spectra agree well with observed spectra from benchmark stars, showing much better agreement with line profile shapes than with LTE modelling. The line-to-line scatter in the derived abundances shows some improvements compared to LTE (where the cores of strong lines must often be ignored), particularly when coupled with averaged 3D models. The observed Mg emission features at 7 and 12 μm in the spectra of the Sun and Arcturus, which are sensitive to the collision data, are reasonably well reproduced. Charge transfer with H is generally important as a thermalising mechanism in dwarfs, but less so in giants. Excitation due to collisions with H is found to be quite important in both giants and dwarfs. The R-matrix calculations for electron collisions also lead to significant differences compared to when approximate formulas are employed. The modelling predicts non-LTE abundance corrections ΔA(Mg) NLTE−LTE in dwarfs, both solar metallicity and metal-poor, to be very small (of order 0.01 dex), even smaller than found in previous studies. In giants, corrections vary greatly between lines, but can be as large as 0.4 dex. Conclusions. Our results emphasise ...

The conical intersection regions on the potential energy functions of the valence excited 1,3Σu−, 1,3Δu, 3Σu+, and 1,3Πg states of CO2 have been investigated by ab initio calculations. Using large scale multireference configuration interaction the ordering of the lowest valence excited states of CO2 has been calculated to be 3B2, 3A2, 1A2 followed by 1B2. All these states have bent equilibrium structures and lie energetically below their dissociation asymptotes. The near equilibrium parts of the potential energy functions have been mapped in three dimensions by multiconfiguration self-consistent field calculations. The 1,3B2 and 1,3A2 states differ in their equilibrium angles (118° and 127°, respectively), and have much longer equilibrium distances (around 1.26 Å) than the electronic ground state. Anomalously low values of ca. 800 cm−1 have been calculated for the wave number of the antisymmetric stretching vibrations of the 1A2, 3B2, and 1B2 states. The crossings between the bent valence excited states in the geometry region 90°≤αOCO≤150° and 1.1 Å≤RCO≤1.4 Å have been located.

We report full quantum scattering calculations for low-energy near-threshold inelastic cross sections in Mg + H and Mg + + H − collisions. The calculations include all transitions between the eight lowest adiabatic MgH( 2 + ) molecular states, with the uppermost of those diabatically extended to the ionic molecular state in the asymptotic region. This allows us to treat the excitation processes between the seven lowest atomic states of magnesium in collisions with hydrogen atoms, as well as the ion-pair production and the mutual neutralization processes. The collision energy range is from threshold up to 10 eV. These results are important for astrophysical modeling of spectra in stellar atmospheres. The processes in question are carefully examined and several process mechanisms are found. Some mechanisms are determined by interactions between ionic and covalent configurations at relatively large internuclear distances, while others are based on short-range nonadiabatic regions due to interactions between covalent configurations.

The influence of inelastic hydrogen atom collisions on non-LTE spectral line formation has been, and remains to be, a significant source of uncertainty for stellar abundance analyses, due to the difficulty in obtaining accurate data for low-energy atomic collisions either experimentally or theoretically. For lack of a better alternative, the classical "Drawin formula" is often used. Over recent decades, our understanding of these collisions has improved markedly, predominantly through a number of detailed quantum mechanical calculations. In this paper, the Drawin formula is compared with the quantum mechanical calculations both in terms of the underlying physics and the resulting rate coefficients. It is shown that the Drawin formula does not contain the essential physics behind direct excitation by H atom collisions, the important physical mechanism being quantum mechanical in character. Quantitatively, the Drawin formula compares poorly with the results of the available quantum mechanical calculations, usually significantly overestimating the collision rates by amounts that vary markedly between transitions.

Rate coefficients for inelastic Mg+H collisions are calculated for all transitions between the lowest seven levels and the ionic state (charge transfer), namely Mg(3s 2 1 S, 3s3p 3 P, 3s3p 1 P, 3s4s 3 S, 3s4s 1 S, 3s3d 1 D, 3s4p 3 P)+H(1s) and Mg + (3s 2 S)+H − . The rate coefficients are based on cross-sections from full quantum scattering calculations, which are themselves based on detailed quantum chemical calculations for the MgH molecule. The data are needed for non-LTE applications in cool astrophysical environments, especially cool stellar atmospheres, and are presented for a temperature range of 500−8000 K. From consideration of the sensitivity of the cross-sections to various uncertainties in the calculations, most importantly input quantum chemical data and the numerical accuracy of the scattering calculations, a measure of the possible uncertainties in the rate coefficients is estimated.

The BASECOL2012 database is a repository of collisional data and a web service within the Virtual Atomic and Molecular Data Centre (VAMDC, http://www.vamdc.eu). It contains rate coefficients for the collisional excitation of rotational, ro-vibrational, vibrational, fine, and hyperfine levels of molecules by atoms, molecules, and electrons, as well as fine-structure excitation of some atoms that are relevant to interstellar and circumstellar astrophysical applications. Submissions of new published collisional rate coefficients sets are welcome, and they will be critically evaluated before inclusion in the database. In addition, BASECOL2012 provides spectroscopic data queried dynamically from various spectroscopic databases using the VAMDC technology. These spectroscopic data are conveniently matched to the in-house collisional excitation rate coefficients using the SPECTCOL sofware package (http:// vamdc.eu/software), and the combined sets of data can be downloaded from the BASECOL2012 website. As a partner of the VAMDC, BASECOL2012 is accessible from the general VAMDC portal (http://portal.vamdc.eu) and from user tools such as SPECTCOL.

Context. Over the next few years, the ALMA and Herschel missions will perform high spatial and spectral resolution studies at infrared and sub-millimeter wavelengths. Modeling of molecular emission requires excitation calculations using radiative, as well as collisional rates, with the most abundant species. In the interstellar medium, the dominant collision partner is H 2 , but little data is available for collisions with H 2 . If data for collisions with He are available, it has often been proposed to use the more available rate coefficients for collision with He, with the appropriate reduced mass correction, as a first estimate of rate coefficients with H 2 ( j = 0). The validity of this approximation is not known. Aims. The present paper focuses on the calculation of rate coefficients among the first rotational levels of the SiS molecule in its ground vibrational state in collision with para-H 2 and compares these new data with recently published He ones to investigate the validity of using He rate coefficients to estimate H 2 ( j = 0) rate coefficients. Methods. A new potential energy surface for the SiS-para-H 2 system was obtained using highly correlated ab initio calculations. Dynamical calculations of pure rotational (de)excitation of SiS by para-H 2 were performed for the first rotational levels within the coupled-states approximation. Results. Collisional cross sections among the 51 first rotational levels of SiS were calculated for kinetic energies up to 2500 cm −1 . State-to-state rate coefficients are calculated for temperatures ranging from 5 K up to 300 K. A propensity rule that favors even ∆ j transitions is found and is explained by the near homonuclear symmetry of the SiS-para-H 2 potential energy surface. A detailed comparison with recent SiS-He rate coefficients is also presented. We demonstrate that collision with He is a reasonable model for collisions with para-H 2 , although this approximation must be used with caution.